Costa Careyes stretches along the Mexican Riviera in Jalisco, Mexico. IPC’s project in the region encompasses 3000 hectares sited on the Bahia de Chamela, a long bay sheltered by twelve small uninhabited islands. The Chamela-Cuixmala Biosphere, a 130 square-km nature reserve, borders the project to the east.
IPC is developing a fourteen-acre botanical park situated between two beach coves and a riverine estuary. The site was a previously abandoned and degraded open space affected by stagnant water and salt intrusion. The park originated followed hurricane Jova in late 2011, which left blown-down trees throughout the expansive project site. More than a thousand specimen trees were prepared for transport, lifted by crane, and transplanted into the beach park, which is now a display area for the diversity of indigenous flora.
After mature tree transplant we continued to develop the park planting thousands of tree seedlings representing well over fifty native species propagated in our on site nursery.
In late 2015 the park was at the exact point of landfall of Hurricane Patricia, the second largest tropical storm ever recorded worldwide. The park showed excellent resilience suffering only minor damage.
In conjunction with other project facets, the botanical park is on-going; specimen plant material is being added continuously.
Before: Park site 2012.
After: Park site 2016.