Mexico's best beach, ecosystem 'stumbles' due to coastline erosion and dying coral reefs
Despite the efforts of local authorities, there is no improvement... The impact of El Nino is increasing
People who rely on the sea to make a living "There are no customers, only Paris... It's all El Niño's fault."
[※ Editor's note = Recently, a massive flood occurred in the mountainous area along the border between China and Nepal. Analysis suggests that large-scale glaciers collapsed due to climate change, leading to floods. Climate disasters such as drought, heat waves, and El Niño, as well as the collapse of glaciers, are becoming more severe around the world. Following the 2022 'Visiting Climate Crisis Sites' series, Yonhap News has prepared a special article to revisit sites where abnormal climate shocks have become a reality. In this series, 5 reportages will be published over 3 weeks.]
(La Paz [Mexico] = Yonhap News) Correspondent Song Gwang-ho = Mr. Haesús Sanchez was raising his voice while chopping.
“We sell fresh fish.”
When I met him at a seafood market in La Paz, the capital of Baja California Sur, Mexico, on the 15th (local time), he was enthusiastic about doing business with a smile on his face. However, the size of the voice was not proportional to income. The surrounding area was filled with flies that smelled like fish.
He, who works at Mercado Madero, the largest seafood market in La Paz, said that it is rare to have a day without customers like these days. The price of fish has risen, and as the species of fish caught have changed, the number of customers has dropped off.
“This is all because of El Nino.”
El Niño is a phenomenon in which the sea surface temperature near the equator rises abnormally, causing abnormal climate around the world. It usually occurs every 2 to 7 years, but experts predict that this year will be the worst El Niño ever. The sea surface temperature has already exceeded the 'Super El Niño' standard of being 2.0 degrees higher than normal.
The University of Chicago's Climate Impact Research Institute estimated that between this fall and early next year, about 450,000 people worldwide will die from heat-related illnesses caused by El Niño. The damage to property is unpredictable.
Mr. Sanchez is one of those common victims. He said, “Compared to previous years, the influence of El Nino seems to be much more pronounced this year. Fish species have changed and the catch has also decreased,” he said. “It is not easy to hold on.”
Although their livelihoods are not directly affected like fishermen and merchants, consumers are also victims. Juan Armando, an Uber driver, complained, saying, "I feel like the price of fish has gone up by 20 to 40 percent. These days, I don't go to seafood restaurants often. Fish is too expensive."
El Niño does not only make human life difficult. It also causes changes in natural features and environments.
Baja California is known as a paradise for retirees due to its beautiful beaches. In addition to Mexicans, many Americans and people from other countries live here. In particular, La Paz, located at the southern end, is famous not only as a commercial center but also as a tourist destination.
When I asked a local person near the market, he said that the nearby El Coromuel Beach was a 'popular spot' for residents to cool off from the heat. We arrived at El Coromuel Beach by Uber, expecting to see the beautiful nature, but the first thing that greeted the reporter was a blood-red warning sign that read 'Collapse Risk' (Riesgo de Derrumbe). It was a sign asking people not to go inside because falling rocks might hit them.
The reason why warning signs decorated the beach like a gate was because waves and currents were eating away at the bedrock and sand layers of the beach and cliffs, increasing the risk that the ground above could not hold up and collapse. Even though the sea has softer waves than any other beach, erosion is progressing significantly.
Albert Dario, from the UK, who has been living in La Paz for 20 years, said, "There are too many places like this in the La Paz area," and added, "Coastline erosion due to climate change is serious."
I visited Playa Balandra the next day to further check the state of coastline erosion. As I drove northeast from the city center for about 30 minutes, a clear emerald sea unfolded beyond the barren cactus colony. It is a national protected area that Mexico is proud of. Because the water depth is shallow and the waterway is calm, it is called ‘Paradise of the Pacific’.
State officials are taking strong action to protect the environment of Valandra, which some call "Mexico's best beach." First, the number of people who can visit the beach per day was strictly limited to 900. Installation of base stations was also strictly prohibited. Of course, the cell phone didn't explode. It is a remote area where you cannot call an Uber or a taxi, so people without a car have no choice but to rely on buses that run several times a day. Balandra Beach was such a place.
Even with this thorough protection, Balandra Beach could not avoid being hit directly by El Nino. This is because it was the forefront of the abnormal rise in water temperature that simultaneously hit the Eastern Pacific Ocean and the Sea of Cortez. The temperature of the water I touched was warm, and there were almost no waves, but numerous changes were occurring in the water. The brilliant corals, the symbol of Balandra, were bleaching. turning white. It meant death in nature.
“As sea surface temperatures have risen in recent years, corals near Balandra have been dying,” said Fernando Arancetta, a researcher at the Northwest Biological Institute, Mexico’s national research institute.
Abnormal high water, created by a combination of El Niño and global warming, was eating away the calm white sand beaches of this coast little by little every year. The fine white sandy beach was captured by the gentle waterway and was gradually giving way to the sea, and the strangely shaped cliffs that protected the coastal boundary were showing an ugly appearance, with their bases washed away by the incessant waves. The 'Paradise of the Pacific' was slowly fading away in the midst of a silent disaster that was progressing quietly but without hesitation.
“The damage caused by El Niño is serious. The impact of coral reef bleaching, coastline erosion, and mangrove loss on the coastal ecosystem, including changes in fish species and breeding of migratory birds, is indescribable.”
These are the words of Balandra Beach manager Alexis Saucedo.
