The chickens run between the rows of crops at Don Celestino Bartolo’s ranch, a farmer who wipes the sweat from his brow after sowing what may be his last harvest of corn. Rosalino, his son, milks his cows and points with sadness toward the place where they used to fish. A huge wind turbine stands there now–one of 117 installed by the company Gas Natural Fenosa.
Under the Zapotec name Bií Hioxo Energy, the massive wind energy project under construction in the municipality of Juchitan de Zaragoza forms part of a wind corridor in the Isthmus of Tehuantepec. The corridor encompasses part of the southern Mexican states of Oaxaca, Chiapas, Tabasco and Veracruz. The geographical feature of this narrow strip, linking the Pacific Ocean and the Gulf of Mexico, is the constant wind speed (between 20 and 30 meters per second), which has attracted investment in 28 parks projected for the region. Fifteen have already been completed.
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For more information see: Attack and harassment of human rights defender and member of Asamblea Popular del Pueblo de Juchitán Ms Carmen Ruiz Martínez, On Mexican Isthmus, Indigenous Communities Oppose Massive Energy Projects, Cancellation of Mexican wind farm highlights flaw in green transition
