Robert,

First of all thanks for being our "eyes and ears in Cancun" you do a great job of keeping us informed.

But I am curious, here in the US you need about a zillion permits BEFORE you start any building project. Does Mexico not do this? If they do then why would they issue permits for this project? Is there a problem in that office as well? Maybe some bribery going on? Did MP not have approval BEFORE they broke ground? Just seems odd to me that they would find these violations after construction has begun and not before. Is it possible someone let them start just so they could fine them? Also, is Por Esto the liberal newspaper?

I just have a lot of questions and not only because it is Palace I would have these same questions if it was any major resort with deep pockets. I am a Palace member though and do have a vested interest in this particular resort.

As far as building permits go in this area, that is a difficult question to answer. Yes, they should have permits but you can either pay enough to get what you want or go ahead and build and pay someone if you get caught. Of course Moon Palace probably got caught in the middle on this one.

Laws protecting the mangroves have long been on the books but all the resorts have violated them with only minor sanctions. The new President, Felipe Calderon, pushed through tough new laws and it is apparent, he intends to enforce them. I am sure this comes as a huge surprise to Moon Palace and others!

The same is happening here on the island. Not only is Donald Trump wanting to build in a protected area on the east side of the island but one local agent is now advertising property for sale in this protected area on the internet. Of course, if anyone bought this land, they would be surprised to learn they can build nothing on the land!

I should have added that while many have chosen to ignore the laws, it is always reported here that several upscale hotels such as the Fairmont Mayakoba have chosen to carefully protect the local environment and have gone to great expense to do so. Of course, it is reflected in the rates since it is such an expensive propostion for them.

-:- Message from TripAdvisor staff -:-

TripAdvisor staff removed this post either because the author requested it, or because it did not meet TripAdvisor's forum guidelines.

To review the TripAdvisor Forums Posting Guidelines, please follow this link: http://www.tripadvisor.com/pages/forums_posting_guidelines.html

We remove posts that do not follow our posting guidelines, and we reserve the right to remove any post for any reason.

You're boring me. I'm not playing with you any more.

Please don't feed the trolls.

Permits in Mexico? I don't think that word translates

I'm an environmental scientist- wonder if my company would pay for me to go 'investigate'- and possibly bring in some new work?????

-:- Message from TripAdvisor staff -:-

This topic was inactive for 6 months and has been closed to new posts. We hope you'll join the conversation by posting to an open topic or starting a new one.

To review the TripAdvisor Forums Posting Guidelines, please follow this link: http://www.tripadvisor.com/pages/forums_posting_guidelines.html

We remove posts that do not follow our posting guidelines, and we reserve the right to remove any post for any reason.