MEXICO CITY, Associated Press – Mexican environmental officials they have authorized a private reconstruction project for Mexico's famous Caribbean beaches after much of the sugar-white sand was washed away by Hurricane Wilma. The federal government approved a plan by hotel owners to build 2 miles of artificial beach in Cancun, where the storm caused an estimated US$1 billion in damage and washed away vast stretches of beach. Environmental Secretary Jose Luis Luege said in a statement that the new beach will be laid in front of 25 hotels and bankrolled entirely by private interests. Using sand dredged from the sea floor not far from Cancun's coastline, officials did not say how much the project will cost or when work is scheduled to begin.
Construction teams will pile sandbags on the beach to create space to work and protect crews from the waves. They will then eventually cover the bags with newly arriving sand to create artificial dunes, said Ricardo Juarez, the Environmental Department's Director of Impact and Risk. The plastic used to make the sand bags is nontoxic and will gradually decompose and disappear into the newly formed dunes, Juarez said.
The hurricane slammed into Cancun at Category 4 strength on Oct. 21, killing four people and damaging or destroying thousands of homes, businesses and hotels, as well as forcing the airport to close to all but emergency flights. Tens of thousands of tourists were left stranded for several days.
Many stretches of sandy beach were carried off completely by Wilma and the powerful storm surges it created, leaving behind only jagged rocks and debris. The hotel zones of Cancun and other world-famous resorts such as Playa del Carmen and the island of Cozumel were especially hard-hit – making it difficult to attract tourists.
