by Nathan LaBudde
International Marine Mammal Project
Over a dozen Mexican environmental groups have filed a criminal lawsuit against the Mexican salt corporation Exportadora de Sal S.A. (ESSA) located in Guerrero Negro, Baja California, Mexico for killing 94 endangered sea turtles and other aquatic life in a spill of toxic brine occurring in December of 1997. Environmentalists charge Mexican authorities have failed to prosecute ESSA/Mitsubishi after an investigation by the Mexican environmental agency PROFEPA found ESSA responsible for the sea turtle die-off. A second investigation conducted in secret by PROFEPA and ESSA scientists later cleared ESSA of any wrongdoing.
ESSA, jointly owned by the Mexican Government (51 percent) and Japan's Mitsubishi Corporation (49 percent), has been plagued by environmental mishaps throughout its forty year history at the Guerrero Negro Lagoon and adjacent Ojo de Liebre Lagoon. The lawsuit also charges ESSA with releasing 16,000 cubic meters of toxic brine containing not only high concentrations of salt but metals such as lead, magnesium, mercury, and arsenic. In addition, a third accident occurred in January this year at Ojo de Liebre lagoon which caused the deaths of a dozen sea turtles, fish and seabirds. ESSA/Mitsubishi is trying to maintain an "environmentally friendly" image preceding its release of an environmental impact statement to build a new, highly-controversial 116 square mile salt factory at San Ignacio Lagoon, a pristine gray whale birthing lagoon in the protected El Vizcaino Nature Reserve in the state of Baja California Sur, Mexico.
Even as this newest legal battle begins, higher than usual die-offs of whales, sea turtles, sea lions and fish in the lagoons of Magdelena Bay, Guerrero Negro and Ojo de Liebre Lagoons, and Baja coastal waters have scientists and environmentalists worried. So far this year several disturbing instances of "group mortalities" have been noticed. In Magdelena Bay seven gray whales were found dead in one week; in late February, 180 decomposing seals were discovered on the shores of San Jorge Island; and a tourist camping at Guerrero Negro Lagoon told IMMP staff of "waking up one morning and finding a half dozen sea turtles dead on the beach, all within several yards of each other."
While no single theory explaining the die-offs has been presented, it has been suggested that a reduction in fish stocks as an effect of El Niņo and the continued effects of man-made pollution as possible explanations.
What You Can Do: Help us continue our battle to prevent ESSA/Mitsubishi from building a salt factory at San Ignacio Lagoon. Contact IMMP for a free set of "Save San Ignacio Lagoon" postcards (see below).
For further info, contact the International Marine Mammal Project:
Write: 300 Broadway, Suite 28, San Francisco, CA 94133
Phone: (415) 788-3666 x147
E-mail: <marinemammal@earthisland.org>
Surf: www.earthisland.org/immp
Mexican Greens Sue Over Turtle Die-off