"Mexico closes US gravel quarry that had been pressured", 06 May 2022

...The Environment Department said Friday it closed the quarry owned by Vulcan Materials near Playa del Carmen, on the Caribbean coast. Parts of the quarry have been excavated below the water table, and the department said the mining threatened water quality and subsoil conditions.

But the timing of the move raised questions: Vulcan has been operating the quarry for around three decades, and President Andrés Manuel López Obrador had recently threatened the company.

López Obrador wants the water-filled quarry to be used as a theme park...He has pressured the Alabama-based aggregates company to sell the property to the government, or open a water park itself.

Vulcan issued a statement Thursday saying it “strongly believes that this action by the Mexican government is illegal."

“The Company has the necessary permits to operate and intends to vigorously pursue all lawful avenues available to it in order to protect its rights and resume normal operations,” it said...

The company said a decision is expected in the second half of 2022. The Environment Department said the company is seeking about $1.5 billion in damages.

The Mexican government originally said a tentative agreement had been reached with Vulcan Materials, and the company said it was willing to open a water park and cruise ship facility. But it has no experience at doing either, and would really just like to continue mining gravel.

López Obrador wants the gravel to use as ballast for another of his signature projects, the Maya Train, a 950-mile (1,500- kilometer) rail line that will run in a rough loop around the Yucatan Peninsula, connecting Caribbean coast resorts with archaeological sites inland...