Four months after Mexico’s environmental ministry rejected a controversial development near the Sierra La Laguna Biosphere Reserve, the same foundation behind the project has filed a new Environmental Impact Statement for what critics call the same plan with a different label. The Hermandad en Armonía Foundation submitted the filing to Semarnat, Mexico’s Ministry of Environment and Natural Resources, on July 1. The proposed project, now called UMA CEICA, would occupy roughly 900,000 square meters on the San Miguelito property in the foothills of the Sierra La Laguna, a UNESCO biosphere reserve located between Los Cabos and La Paz.
Semarnat Rejected the Tío Checo Proposal in March 2026
The foundation’s first attempt at the site was a project called Santuario del Tío Checo. That filing sought a land-use change, site preparation, construction, and operation of what Semarnat’s Baja California Sur office classified as a real estate development in a coastal ecosystem. Semarnat rejected the Environmental Impact Statement in March 2026.
The Tío Checo proposal covered roughly 90 hectares on the same San Miguelito property. It included plans to breed bighorn sheep, pronghorn, and white-tailed deer, then introduce them into the core zone of the Sierra La Laguna Protected Natural Area. Opponents argued the conservation framing was a cover for commercial real estate activity near the reserve’s buffer zone.
The new filing drops the multi-species sanctuary concept. UMA CEICA, which stands for Environmental Management Unit Center for Education, Research and Environmental Conservation, focuses instead on mule deer. Project documents describe four single-story buildings for administrative and operational use, plus fenced outdoor areas that would require a change in forest land use. Construction costs are estimated at 100 million pesos (about $5.7 million USD).
The Filing Admits Land Was Cleared Without Permits
One striking detail in the new Environmental Impact Statement is the foundation’s own admission that unauthorized clearing already took place on the site. The filing states that low deciduous forest vegetation was removed from forest land before any environmental permits were obtained. Office trailers and construction materials were installed in the cleared area.
“This activity was carried out without obtaining the corresponding authorizations,” the document reads. Under Mexican environmental law, clearing forest land without authorization can trigger penalties under the General Law of Ecological Balance and Environmental Protection (LGEEPA), which governs Environmental Impact Statements. Semarnat can impose fines, order restoration of damaged areas, or deny future permits based on prior violations.
The fact that the foundation disclosed this unauthorized clearing in its own filing creates a legal paradox. On one hand, the disclosure could be read as transparency. On the other, it gives Semarnat documented grounds to question whether the applicant will comply with future permit conditions. Under LGEEPA, Semarnat has up to 60 business days to evaluate an Environmental Impact Statement after accepting it for review. Public comments can be submitted during that window.
Environmental Groups Allege Ecocide at San Miguelito
The Collective of Associations and Citizens for the Defense of the Territory has publicly accused the foundation of committing ecocide at the San Miguelito property. Ecocide refers to severe, widespread, or long-term destruction of ecosystems. A 2021 international legal panel defined it as unlawful or wanton acts committed with knowledge that they are likely to cause severe environmental damage. Mexico does not yet have a federal ecocide statute, but Baja California Sur’s state penal code was amended in 2023 to include environmental crimes, and the accusation could support a complaint before the FGE, the state attorney general’s office.
Critics have also linked the Hermandad en Armonía Foundation to Mexico’s Green Ecologist Party (PVEM) through the involvement of Jorge González, known publicly as “El Niño Verde.” González has faced scrutiny for decades over alleged conflicts between his political role in an environmentalist party and business ventures tied to land development. The PVEM, despite its name, has been criticized by Mexican environmental organizations for supporting development projects that conflict with conservation goals.
Sierra La Laguna Buffer Zone Under Growing Pressure
The Sierra La Laguna Biosphere Reserve covers roughly 112,437 hectares and was designated a UNESCO biosphere reserve in 2003. Its core zone prohibits development, but the surrounding buffer zone permits limited activity with Semarnat approval. The San Miguelito property sits near this buffer zone, in a corridor that has seen rising interest from developers as Los Cabos expands northward.
Property along the eastern Cape region and the Sierra La Laguna foothills has attracted both conservation buyers and speculative developers. The distinction between a legitimate UMA (a recognized conservation tool under Mexican law that allows regulated wildlife management on private land) and a development project using UMA status as a permitting pathway is a recurring tension in Baja California Sur. Semarnat’s BCS office has approved dozens of UMAs across the state, but few have involved construction budgets of 100 million pesos or requests for 10-year construction permits with 30-year operational lifespans.
The foundation has requested a 10-year window to complete site preparation and construction, citing permitting delays. It estimates the project would operate for at least 30 years. Semarnat’s review period began with the July 1 filing, and a decision could come by late September 2026. This article was prepared using information published by El Sudcaliforniano and the Environmental Impact Statement submitted to Semarnat.