BajaBlanca
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Posts: 13195
Registered: 10-28-2008
Location: La Bocana, BCS
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Balandra Bay and Felipe Calderon's last act as president
Conserving the Beauty of Baja
By Bryan and Sergio Jáuregui, Todos Santos Eco Adventures
This article was originally published in Janice Kinne’s Journal del Pacifico.
Niparajá is the god of the now-extinct Pericu Indians of Baja California Sur whose mandate is to care for the oceans and the land. It is also the name
of the dynamic conservation organization that, since 1990, has been engaged in the same tasks, working hard to protect the oceans and lands of
southern Baja for a vibrant and sustainable economy. The organization has been successful on a variety of projects over the years, and two recent
achievements in particular demonstrate how powerful previously disenfranchised local voices can be.
The Battle for Balandra Bay
Balandra Bay is, without a doubt, one of the most beautiful beach areas to be found anywhere in the world. The waters are fantastically blue, the
beaches stunningly white, the mangroves thrillingly vibrant and the iconic mushroom rock formation that sits at the mouth of the bay an instantly
recognizable symbol of the city of La Paz. For generations of La Paz citizens Balandra Bay has simply been the town beach. It is where everyone in La
Paz learned how to swim and it is where everyone in La Paz goes on a free summer afternoon. But very few people in the city realized that their
beloved “town beach” was in fact privately owned, and had been for decades.
Balandra Bay
That all changed abruptly in 2005 when the owners began soliciting designs from architectural firms throughout Mexico for a major development at
Balandra Bay, a project that would include a hotel, golf course, beach club and vacation homes. The potential for a world-class resort is undeniable,
and many of the firms responded with thrilling designs. But a partner in one of the solicited firms sits on the board of Niparajá, and the owners got
quite a different design concept from that organization – namely, how to build a social movement.
At that point in time little had been done to protect the public spaces that people come to La Paz to enjoy. A few years before a resort complex had
been built in El Mogote, a sand bar in the Bay of La Paz. Despite strong local opposition the owners were issued permits to build, and the citizens of
La Paz were bitter. While ultimately the owners were forced to abandon the project for environmental noncompliance, they had already created a large
group of buildings that are no longer maintained (some of them actually occupied), a tough daily visual reminder of what can go wrong with some
development efforts.
Mushroom Rock at Balandra Bay
So when the owners of Balandra Bay announced their intentions to create a large resort complex, citizens and city government alike were galvanized to
prevent a repeat of El Mogote. Niparajá helped direct that strong social discontent into a strong collective action through the creation of Colectivo
Balandra. It involved thousands of citizens, scientists, researchers and NGOs, all committed to preserving Balandra Bay in a pristine way for public
enjoyment. They organized a huge media campaign – “A mi me importa Balandra (I do care about Balandra)” – creating TV spots featuring everyone from
the lady everyone took piano lessons from as a kid, to a popular local ranchero band, to favorite local luchadores, to the local water polo team
(although that spot was later deemed too racy and wasn’t aired). Local bands gave free concerts in the streets and raised tons of money for the
effort, while volunteers worked the crowds relentlessly to collect over 30,000 signatures on a petition to save Balandra.
That the public wanted to protect Balandra from development became very clear to all involved, but the federal government believed the area was too
small for it to focus on and suggested a more local solution. The state, however, does not have the authority to declare places like Balandra
protected as the water and beaches to 20 meters above the high tide line are under federal jurisdiction. The municipal government of La Paz therefore
took matters into its own hands and declared the area around Balandra a protected area. But the action was easily annulled as the municipal government
had no authority to create a protected zone. That is, they had no authority until Colectivo Balandra stepped in, got the law changed and gave them the
authority. 6 years into the battle to save Balandra Bay, the municipal government of La Paz declared it a protected area.
It was an exciting, but short-lived victory. During a period of electoral transition in the municipal government, the owners of Balandra pressed their
case and won back 80% of the land that the city had declared protected. It was then that all parties involved realized that if Balandra was going to
be shielded from development in any meaningful, long-term way, the federal government would have to take action.
It was now November 2012. The citizens and government of La Paz had been battling for Balandra for 7 years. For 6 of those years Felípe Calderón had
been president of Mexico and his government was fully apprised of the situation. It was now the final days of his presidency and Colectivo Balandra
was desperate to obtain federal protection from him; there was no way to know when or if the new government of Peña Nieto would focus on such a
relatively small local issue. But the papers sent to Calderón for his signature simply lay on his desk. The clock ticked. Soon it was November 30,
2012, the last day of Calderón’s presidency. The party faithful were gathered for a last dinner with no actionable items on the agenda. But Carlos
Mendoza Davis, a senator from BCS, stood up in the middle of the meal and made an impassioned plea for the federal protection of Balandra Bay. He
recounted how he had learned to swim there then how his children had learned to swim there and how Balandra was an integral part of the public life of
La Paz, the capital of BCS. He made those gathered feel what a deep loss it would be to the community to give the land over to development. He made
Calderón feel what a great thrill it would be to end his presidency with a declaration of Balandra’s protection. This feeling carried Calderón back to
his office where, in one of his very last acts as president of Mexico, he signed the paperwork that made Balandra Bay a federal Area of Flora and
Fauna Protection. One crucial voice, at one critical moment, channeling thousands of voices united over millions of hours to preserve a pristine
location central to the identity of a city. The god Niparajá was certainly smiling
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ligui
Senior Nomad
Posts: 833
Registered: 2-9-2008
Location: Fraser co.
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Mood: love Baja !
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Very nice ending for once ..... Thanks! 
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Loretana
Senior Nomad
Posts: 825
Registered: 5-19-2006
Location: Oregon/Loreto
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Mood: alegre
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A lovely young Pacena and her brother were enjoying Balandra with their Dad when I visited in March.........as the next generation become the stewards
of this exceptionally beautiful place....Senator Carlos Mendoza Davis is to be congratulated for his efforts!!
"If you want to find the secrets of the universe, think in terms of energy, frequency and vibration."
-Nikola Tesla
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DavidE
Ultra Nomad
Posts: 3814
Registered: 12-1-2003
Location: Baja California México
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Mood: 'At home we demand facts and get them. In Mexico one subsists on rumor and never demands anything.' Charles Flandrau,
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I just LOVE to get those full color slick con-job brochures announcing pie-in-the-sky developments that for all intents and purposes are just a "short
while" from being completed.
I reply to the brochures...
"Where you gonna get the water?"
The brochure arrivals have dried up. I might have saved some Lob-lolly pines in the process.
A Lot To See And A Lot To Do
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acadist
Super Nomad
Posts: 1125
Registered: 3-31-2007
Location: Spanaway,WA
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Mood: Waiting for the Sun
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Awesome!!!! One of our favorite places to visit when we visit La Paz
Dave
I moved to CO and they made me buy a little rod to make it feel like a real fish
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Whale-ista
Super Nomad
Posts: 2009
Registered: 2-18-2013
Location: San Diego
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Mood: Sunny with chance of whales
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Last-minute environmental protection acts
Great story with a happy ending.
Reminds me of Pres.Zedillo's Last minutes act to protect San Ignacio Lagoon from industrial development in 2000.
It's funny how elected officials become environmentalists... on the day they leave office. There's a saying in the conservation community:
environmentalists make great ancestors. Unfortunately, most politicians don't want to be considered one while still in office, esp if they have future
aspirations to continue in office.
\"Probably the airplanes will bring week-enders from Los Angeles before long, and the beautiful poor bedraggled old town will bloom with a
Floridian ugliness.\" (John Steinbeck, 1940, discussing the future of La Paz, BCS, Mexico)
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