Residents of San Rafael, Sinaloa, and El Alacrán, in Tabasco’s Barra de Santa Ana region, have formed a community brigade and completed training to lead coastal dune revegetation efforts. Their work will help restore these natural barriers against erosion as part of the Eni México and UNESCO strategy in Tabasco.
The project, known as Dunas Vivas (Living Dunes), includes a temporary paid work scheme to carry out its activities. It aims to mitigate coastal erosion, which damages Santa Ana and other coastal communities in Mexico. This problem has worsened in recent years due to climate change and the resulting rise in sea level.
A prior assessment and feasibility study found that 85% of the coastline between Boca de Santa Ana and Boca de Panteones is undergoing erosion. In critical areas, up to 3.5 metres of shoreline are lost each year. Collective mitigation efforts are urgent: while some stretches of beach are more than 50 to 60 metres wide, others measure less than 10 metres.
In response, the coastal dune revegetation plan is grounded in scientific evidence and a participatory process with the communities of El Alacrán, Manatinero, San Rafael, Sinaloa Primera Sección and Sinaloa Segunda Sección (Arjona). Eni México and UNESCO lead the initiative in collaboration with the Autonomous University of Carmen (UNACAR) and the Juárez Autonomous University of Tabasco (UJAT), as well as ejido authorities and authorities at different levels of government.
The communities formed a 30-member brigade, 23 of whom are women, to roll out the action plan. Members volunteered and were selected by community agreement. The brigade began activities with a training session from 12 to 14 October to strengthen their knowledge of coastal dunes, revegetation, the territory and the plant species involved.
