This footage shows a dying turtle which washed up on a beach after reportedly being poisoned by a sulphuric acid leak in a UNESCO-protected sea.
The scenes were recorded by an onlooker on the San Francisco de San Carlos beach in the municipality of Guaymas, in the north-western Mexican state of Sonora and have been shared by local congressman Carlos Navarrete Aguirre.
Video Credit: CEN/@DiputadoCharlieNavarrete
Famous French naval officer and scientist Jacques Cousteau once described the Gulf of California as the “aquarium of the world” and 244 islands, islets and coastal area of the gulf are protected as UNESCO World Heritage Sites.
In the video, the turtle can be seen on the beach with its mouth open. According to local media, it was still alive at this point. The turtle then reportedly died and another clip shows its body being taken in and out from the shore by the waves.
Video Credit: CEN/@CPJannyBarrera
The person who recorded the video said the turtle and other marine wildlife had been killed by the leaking of 3,000 litres of sulphuric acid from the company Grupo Mexico into the Gulf of California, also known as the Sea of Cortes.
Another image shows a sea lion which washed up onto the shore after the alleged leak.
Congressman Aguirre shared the video with the message: “The first marine turtle dies in the beach San Francisco of San Carlos, Guaymas. Grupo Mexico poured thousands of litres of sulphuric acid into the Sea of Cortes on Tuesday 9th July. This will not be left unpunished, we want and ask for the cancellation of the concession of the toxic group of German Larrea Motavelasco.
“This is finishing our environment. It is destroying mountains, it is polluting rivers, the sea, our environment, it causes diseases, it is killing us through cancer and it is killing all kinds of animal species. That is why, in my representation as secretary of the Commission of Energy, Environment and Climate Change in the Congress of Sonora, I am asking for the removal of the concession of exploitation of our natural resources to Grupo Mexico, the world’s worst predator.”
Local media report Grupo Mexico, the largest mining company in the country, leaked 3,000 litres of sulphuric acid into the Gulf of California when a valve broke in one of their pipes.
Reports state that the leak took place when the company was carrying out a test procedure and draining the pipes for cleaning.
According to Abraham Larios Velazquez, Head of the Port Administration of Guaymas, high temperatures made one of the valves collapse and caused the sulphuric acid to pour into the sea.
The valve was eventually shut and the authorities are checking the area in order to determine the damages.
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Story By: Ana Lacasa, Sub-Editor: Joseph Golder, Agency: Central European News
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