First came the announcement: The Mexican government and Japan’s Mitsubishi Corp. have canceled their $180 million project to build a huge salt plant at Laguna San Ignacio, a gray whale breeding ground in Baja California Sur. Then came the questions: Is this a sign Mexico will give the environment more weight in future development decisions? Or is it simply a political surrender in the face of unusually vigorous and broad-based environmental opposition? Speculation on both points has abounded since Mexico and Mitsubishi disclosed on March 2 that they were scrapping their project in Laguna San Ignacio, which is part of the Vizcaino Biosphere Reserve. And small wonder. Their joint venture, Exportadora de Sal (Essa)—owned 49% by Mitsubishi and 51% by the Mexican government... [Log in to read more]
