Lake in Mexico region known for Day of the Dead celebrations is disappearing
Sheena Goodyear | CBC Radio | Posted: April 19, 2024 10:20 PM | Last Updated: April 22
'It is very upsetting for the people in the whole area,' says local hotelier
When Mexican hotelier Arturo Pimentel looks out at Lake Pátzcuaro, he sees a massive patch of dry land where sparkling water should be.
The lake in Michoacán state — which he says holds immense cultural, economic and ecological importance for the region — has been losing water for years, he said.
"But this is the worst time ever I have seen," Pimentel, president of the local hotel association, told As It Happens host Nil Köksal.
"It is very upsetting for the people in the whole area."
The lake has lost about 50 per cent of its usual volume, according to CNN affiliate Televisa.
The municipal government of Pátzcuaro told the news station that a combination of "environmental factors," such as drought, and the "illicit extraction of water" is to blame.
The Pátzcuaro government did not respond to a request for comment from CBC.
The extent of the problem was driven home in a viral video last week, in which a YouTuber is able to walk across the lake almost to the island of Janitzio. The island is normally reachable only by boat.
"As you can see, it's all dry," the YouTuber, known as El Perepeche, says as he treks across the patched, dry land across from Janitzio.
WATCH | Aerial video of disappearing Lake Pátzcuaro:
Janitzio, Pátzcuaro and other areas around the lake are known for their elaborate Day of the Dead celebrations, which are a huge tourist draw.
"We have visitors from all over the world and this is the most important thing that happens in this area," Pimentel said.
"The lake is very important because it is also the fountain of so many stories, so many legends, history. It's a fountain of life. And we're losing that part of this area."
He's hoping the rainy season will replenish the lake before the Day of the Dead in November.
"As business people here, we have to develop some different tourism attractions and have other options," he said.
It's not the only lake that's losing water in the country that has been facing severe drought.
In Valle de Bravo, once a glittering weekend getaway for wealthy residents of Mexico City, a reservoir that locals depend on is disappearing, The Associated Press reported last month.
In that case, residents blame a combination of drought, water transfers to the capital, bad planning and the unrestrained construction of private dams and holding ponds by wealthy and powerful newcomers.
In Pátzcuaro, Pimentel says deforestation is also a major contributor to the drying lake, as people cut down trees to make way for avocado groves, disrupting the natural water cycles.
"The avocado has become like a plague in the area," he said.
He is calling on his government to take action. While he has seen police stationed around the lake to curb water theft, he says that's not enough.
"We are in election time. Everybody's in campaign, and they are talking about the issue and lots of 'blah, blah, blah,' but no action yet. So we need the people that are in charge now [to] get to work," he said
"I think this is a matter of survival right now, because it is not only a tourism matter, but what we will leave to the next [generation] in this area."