via Investment Property News from Mexico: Quintana Roo Bans Plastic Bags.

“Mexico is home to 10 percent of the Earth’s species and this wealth of diversity is important not only for Mexico’s ecosystems, but for the people here who depend on these resources for their social, economic and physical well-being,” said WWF President and CEO Carter Roberts. This is the largest private financial commitment from an individual ever made in support of conservation and sustainable development in Mexico,” said Omar Vidal, director of WWF-Mexico.

“This alliance between the private sector, NGOs and government is exactly the kind of partnership that WWF sees as the model for transforming the way we conserve our special places and balance the needs of people and nature around the world,” Vidal said. The work of the alliance will include efforts to mitigate and adapt to climate change, develop comprehensive water management policies, strengthen civil society, develop innovative financial mechanisms, and invest in local sustainable economies.

“This alliance also underscores Mexico’s rising leadership in global negotiations on the design of new financial mechanisms to help developing nations confront and adapt to climate change,” Roberts said. An assessment of the major issues and recommended actions was developed based on consultation with more than 100 government and civil society experts across the selected regions.

The six regions – the Gulf of California, Chihuahuan Desert, Mesoamerican Reef of Mexico, the Monarch Butterfly Region, and the states of Chiapas and Oaxaca – collectively represent 30 percent of the country.

Powerful quake strikes off Honduras

Shacks collapse in Honduras and Belize. But no injuries are immediately reported. A tsunami warning is canceled.

TEGUCIGALPA, Honduras (AP) — A strong earthquake struck early today off the coast of Honduras, collapsing shacks in Honduras and Belize and sending people running into the streets in their pajamas as far away as Guatemala City. No injuries or deaths were immediately reported.

The magnitude-7.1 quake struck at 3:24 a.m. at the relatively shallow depth of 6 miles, according to the U.S. Geological Survey in Golden, Colo. The epicenter was 80 miles northeast of La Ceiba, Honduras, and 200 miles from the capital, Tegucigalpa.

A lot of this just doesn’t seem to hang together very well. First of all, although travelers from Cancun (where I live) have been diagnosed with swine flu, there is one confirmed swine flu in Cancun. I will repeat that. There is exactly one confirmed swine flu in Cancun. One case. Is that just aporcalypto (as Mexicans are now calling it), or what? In fact, despite being called a pandemic, there really aren’t a lot of cases anywhere in the world, not even in Mexico City. So it would be understandable to wonder why total hazmat anti-terror precautions have been unleashed.

Yet there is a connection to President Obama, who visited Mexico Apr. 16-17 and happened to shake hands with Mexican museum director Felipe Solis, who then died with flu-like symptoms, supposedly shortly after exposing the leader of the free world to deadly swine flu germs. Can you imagine Calderón’s reaction? Beloved wildly popular president of US infected by life-threatening disease on visit to Mexican museum. Aack.

The president of Mexico is the world’s most powerful democratically elected leader, almost an absolute dictator for six years. Mexico in crisis mode is incredibly thorough. A total review of flu cases was already in progress as a result of some unusual clusters in Mexico City and Oaxaca. This then escalated into the current crisis, which I think is more a reaction to very understandable anxiety about the political consequences.

Although the late Sr. Solis was initially reported to have died the day after his meeting with President Obama, he died a week of cardiac arrest following pneumonia. He had chronic diabetes and had already suffered a number of strokes. Swine flu was not present. All in all, only 22 flu deaths in Mexico have now been confirmed as swine flu — most of them in a densely packed and polluted city of 18 million.

Meanwhile, the whole country shut down for five days, fortunately coinciding with the long weekend from May Day to Cinco de Mayo, which kind of ruined the holiday for some Mexicans (especially the tourism industry), but may have improved it for others, who just wanted to stay home and drink beer rather spending a lot of money to visit Cancun or take their children to the movies. Well, you get the flu, you rest and take lots of liquids, right? Never has there been a better example of the well-worn saying, “The United States sneezes, and Mexico gets pneumonia.”

So how did these people who supposedly got the flu in Cancun really get it?

They might have gotten it from other visitors, say from Mexico City, or before they got here. How long were they here? As of today, no cases have been confirmed in Cancun.

The incubation period is 4-7 days, possibly longer. They could have brought it with them. Maybe they got it on the plane or at the airport. The plane seems likeliest because of the close quarters and recycled air, but the airport transport is also an even more confined space.

Perfectly healthy individuals will be carrying a large variety of viruses, among other microbes. Many factors enter into falling ill. Normally, travelers don’t get tested for the strain of flu they contract. They just get treated symptomatically. H1N1 is probably a lot more common than anyone realizes, but it is only diagnosed in severe cases or in crisis situations such as the present.

It’s not unrealistic to suppose that the various stresses of traveling could have caused them to develop flu. In other circumstances, they would have been treated symptomatically and not tested for the specific variant.

Try to follow me here as I attempt to refine my speculation.

If, over a period of approximately a week:

[1] Obama shakes hands with Felipe Solis

[2] Felipe Solis comes down with flu-like symptoms

[3] Solis develops pneumonia.

[4] Solis develops complications of pneumonia.

[5] He dies.

[6] Mexico announces an unusual cluster of fatal cases among about 1,000 victims (now reduced to 590 confirmed) believed to be suffering from swine flu leading to…

[7] …a worldwide panic in which every traveler from Mexico feels intense Black Death anxiety, and, if s/he/it so much as sneezes, gets tested for Pork Flu, resulting in Hamdemic, The Aporkalypse. Note that this kind of testing is a bit more expensive and complex than peeing on a home pregnancy strip. Normally, people with sniffles or even roaring influenza are not tested, nor is every positive result the top story on Google News.

[8] Because Cancun is Mexico’s most popular tourism destination, it gets a lot of H1N1 alerts (the name now changed in consideration of hogzilla industry sensitivity, while conveniently relieving madrassa educated Barack Hussein Obama of having to speak the forbidden word swine).

but:

[9] Cancun has only one case of H1N1 despite the deployment of brigades of medical personnel rounding up people with runny noses.

then:

What?

I really do think that the whole thing is a statistical anomaly produced by unusual attention to a rather common virus that occasionally produces very grave symptoms and some deaths in a relatively small set of highly susceptible victims.

While right wing speculation that wily Democrats somehow produced this crisis in order to get Sibelius confirmed is, at best, amusing, I do think that the speed with which the Senate acted was notable. These Obama folks move very fast, it seems, with great skill and force, when they have circumstances on their side. No wonder Glen Beck and Michelle Bachmann are exhibiting symptoms of agitated depression and paranoia. Who wouldn’t?

As in the rest of the nation, public events and facilities will be suspended from May 1-6, except for vital services such as food and transportation. Many government offices are already closed or offering only restricted service, such as emergency tourist card replacements. Business people I talk with here feel (understandably) that authorities are overreacting in an excess of caution, as very few cases of actual swine flu have been identified, especially given the population of Mexico City. Let’s hope they are right.

CNews, Thu, 30 Apr 2009 02:32 AM PDT
Swine flu victims unaware of exposure
Three young Port Perry women who are Ontario’s first confirmed cases of swine flu returned from Cancun on Friday with symptoms but spent the weekend at the local casino and visiting friends because their local hospital never advised them to stay home.

The Scranton Times-Tribune, Thu, 30 Apr 2009 01:45 AM PDT
Mexico’s economy ailing
MEXICO CITY — The music of James Brown plays to an empty Starbucks. A woman has virtually an entire airliner to herself as she flies into Mexico City. Beach chairs go begging on Cancun’s sugary sand.

St. Louis Post-Dispatch, Thu, 30 Apr 2009 01:16 AM PDT
Flu curtails vacations, studies, business travel in Mexico
April 29, 2009 — Tourists Scott Edgar, left, and Matt Metlege, of Canada, sunbathe at the nearly empty Gran Caribe Real hotel’s terrace in Cancun, Mexico.

The Standard-Times, Wed, 29 Apr 2009 22:10 PM PDT
New Bedford couple using caution in Cancun
When Paula and John Gomes were planning a romantic getaway to Cancun to celebrate their anniversary, medical face masks and talk of pandemics didn’t factor into their plans.

Cyber Diver News Network, Wed, 29 Apr 2009 19:41 PM PDT
Cancun, Cozumel, Cabo San Lucas, Mazatlan, Puerto Vallarta tours canceled as swine flu spreads
NEW YORK, New York (28 Apr 2009) — Airlines and travel agencies in Asia, Europe and North America announced cancellation of all flights and tours to Cancun, Cozumel, Cabo San Lucas, Mazatlan and Puerto Vallarta following Mexico’s swine flu outbreak.

ic CheshireOnline, Wed, 29 Apr 2009 18:38 PM PDT
Gemma Hopper of Runcorn has second thoughts about Cancun honeymoon after pig flu scare
HONEYMOONERS who were planning a dream trip to Mexico have seen swine flu wreck their plans just weeks before they were due to travel.

CityNews, Wed, 29 Apr 2009 16:24 PM PDT
Port Perry Woman: What It’s Like To Have The Swine Flu
Justine Stevenson was one of three Port Perry women to contract the illness in Cancun, Mexico. Luckily, their cases were mild.

WCPO Cincinnati, Wed, 29 Apr 2009 16:16 PM PDT
Springboro Teen Tested For Swine Flu
The teenager has flu symptoms and was in Cancun three weeks ago.

See more news stories on Cancun

Tourists are often accused of leaving their mess everywhere and adding to local waste management problems. Garbage is unsightly no matter whether it happens to lie around on our doorstep or outside the hotel room, or on the beach. Some tourists around the world have started initiatives to clean up after themselves.

Volunteers regularly clean up the Inca Trail; tourist powered beach cleaning committees are helping to clean up Italian beaches, and even the Everest Trek is cleaned with the help of tourists. On ‘Clean Up the World Days’ 14-16th of September we can all make a difference to wherever we happen to be in the world, and show that we care — as citizens of the global village.

This is a global initiative – if you look at the website you might find an event taking place near you. If not, join up and organize one yourself!

Clean Up the World partners with the United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP) to inspire communities to “clean up, fix up and conserve their local environment” through activities ranging from waste removal and tree planting to water and energy conservation projects.Clean Up the World mobilizes an estimated 35 million volunteers from more than 100 countries annually.

Getting involved is simple. Groups in any city, town or village across the globe can become a Clean Up the World Member. Membership is free for non corporate Members and renewable annually.

Since the first Clean Up the World campaign in 1993, the improvements achieved due to the efforts of millions of concerned volunteers around the world have been astounding.

Clean Up the World Members participate in a range of Clean Up and Fix Up Projects, either in conjunction with the Clean Up the World Weekend (always the 3rd weekend in September ) or as part of a longer-term environmental project. Some examples of Clean Up the World Activities include:

• Recycling and resource recovery
• Tree planting
• Education campaigns
• Water reuse and conservation
• Competitions
• Exhibitions.

Below, Playa Delfines (also know as Playa Mirador).

CANCUN, Mexico (Reuters) – Residents of the resort and tourists said Dean swept away more sand on parts of the beach, once a wide stretch of white sand. City authorities were checking for damage.

“They have just gone to inspect it and we will know this afternoon but, yes, there is quite a bit of damage on one or two beaches,” said Reina Gil, head of Cancun city administration’s ecology department.”

Inspired by a profound respect for these species, starting this summer The Ritz-Carlton, Cancun is introducing the significant services of the Kanan-Ak — meaning “turtle guardian” in the Mayan language — who guides the guests collaborating in this gratifying program.

“In 14 years we have protected around 661 nests and released more than 83,905 baby turtles. The guests who have had the opportunity to be part of the Turtle Camp Program return home with invaluable memories of their stay with us. The participation of the Kanan-Ak fascinates and surprises our visitors who experience an exceptional encounter with nature,” mentioned Hermann Elger, general manager of the hotel.

During the summer, the Kanan-Ak patrols the beach at night in search of nesting turtles. If nature allows, during their stay visitors witness this extraordinary spectacle and assist with the program. Furthermore, the Kanan-Ak offers brief talks about the importance of safeguarding animal life, especially the Sea Turtles who are in danger of extinction.

After approximately two months of incubation, the baby turtles are ready to start their life in the ocean. Guests are invited to participate in the release of the hatchlings while listening to the sounds of a seashell and entrusting them to Ixchel, a Mayan goddess who takes the travelers under her protection.

Contact:
Laura Pérez Díaz
Director of Public Relations
Tel: (998) 881-0808
Fax: (998) 885-2333
E-mail: laura.perez@ritzcarlton.com
Retorno del Rey No. 36 Zona Hotelera
Cancún, Q. Roo 77500, México