Boca del Cerro, Municipaltiy of Tenosique, Tabasco province near the Guatamalen border. This is the place where the Mexican Government is planning to dam the Usumacinta river. The construction of dams can cause major flooding in the upper reaches of rivers and potentially cause the mouth of the rivers to dry up. It can also result in the loss of virgen forest, evacuation of rural communities and greater concentration of disease in the region. Areas that are at serious risk due to the potential dam construcion on the Usumacinta are the communities located on the banks of the river, the archeaological sites of Yaxchilán in México and Piedras Negras in Guatemala, as well as the Sierra de Lacandón National Park in Guatemala and the foothills of the Sierra la Cojolita in México.
Digitally altered image produced by Tropico Verde to demonstrate how the river would look after the construction of a dam.
ParksWatch-Guatemala: September 2003
