A pandemic is defined as an epidemic of infectious disease that has spread through large regions of human populations.
But, is a pandemic a real possibility? Well, yes. Everyone knows that the smallpox pandemic killed millions of indigenous people in Mexico after its introduction in Veracruz with the arrival of Panfilo de Narvaez in 1520. The population of the Aztec capital Tenochtitlan was decimated and Cortes and his men (having that European immunity) took possession in 1521.
Ahh, but smallpox has been eradicated right? So no worries. Well, that doesn’t mean Mexico hasn’t been affected by other pandemics.
In 1918-1920, the population of Mexico was again dramatically reduced by an influenza pandemic. That particular pandemic was responsible for 20-50 million deaths worldwide.
More recently, Mexico was again hit with a pandemic this time with the “swine flu” in March and April of 2009 with somewhere between 113,000 to 375,000 people having been infected.
Another pandemic waiting to happen was reported in 2016. Cases of the Zika virus have been reported as far north as Mexico. Although it seems the large-scale pesticide preventative measures are causing far more damage than the actual virus.
La Yacata is sparsely populated and we are, for the most part, self-sufficient. We already have quite a few of the things that are recommended by survivalists–food, washboard, clothesline, water collection storage containers and so on. We also are fully capable of growing our own food when needed. Thus making La Yacata a great place to ride out the next pandemic in Mexico.
Mexico is the eleventh largest producer of oil in the world and the thirteenth largest in exportation of oil. It has the seventeenth largest oil reserves and is the fourth largest producer in the Western Hemisphere. In 1938, Petroleos Mexicanos was founded, otherwise known as Pemex, when the Mexican government nationalized all oil resources and facilities. This expropriation didn’t make the US happy and it put financial pressure on Mexico through boycotts.
The US put the pressure on again when Pena Nieto was elected. Bowing to demands, the president changed the 27 and 28 amendments of the Mexico constitution thereby allowing private and foreign investors to conduct exploration and extraction operations within Mexico once again. As of April 2016, private companies were allowed to open gas stations in Mexico, invading the previous monopoly held by Pemex, with the condition that the fuel would be directly purchased from Pemex. Full liberalization is scheduled for 2018 making it clear that Pena Nieto’s intentions are to privatize Mexico’s oil reserves completely.
Although some are touting this as a landmark advancement for Mexico, it just may be what leads to a full-scale oil shortage. In fact, it’s not unheard of for the Mexican government to manufacture oil and gas shortages in order to control a volatile area.
Some suggest that we will quickly become cannibals because we would be unable to obtain food. See, natural gas is used to make nitrogen fertilizers which are used in large-scale farming operations. Tractors and harvesters need oil based products to plant and collect the food. As all those chemically grown crops are not consumed where they are grown, oil is necessary to transport the food to the supermarket. And of course, you need an oil dependant vehicle to get from your house to the supermarket. So cannibalism would be the natural result because EVERYONE has forgotten how to grow their own organic food! We, in La Yacata, have not forgotten. (See Obligatory Organic, Sharecropping, Las tres hermanas, Container Gardening)
An oil shortage would also impact electricity, heating and cooling systems, gas powered vehicles and oil-based products, such as paint, plastic, medicine, toys and more, would become scarce. The interruption in these services and scarcity of these products would cause the total breakdown of society, or so some foretell.
La Yacata has no electricity, so no problem there. (See La Yacata still has no electricity, Chim-chimney, All sizzle and no spark). We currently use a gas stove, but we could switch to leña (wood) or cow patties for cooking without much fuss. We use our fireplace to heat our home on the rare occasions that it is needed. Walking, horseback riding or bicycling could easily replace our motos (motorcycles). In our case, I can’t see that we would be so dreadfully affected that we would succumb to despair and riot in La Yacata.
On the flip side, some predict that running out of oil would be a good thing in the long run. We would have cleaner air, less contamination from plastics, no more fracking pollution, and a large-scale move to renewable energy sources and organic, local farming.
Mexico has 2 nuclear reactors and both are contained within the complex called Laguna Verde Nuclear Power Plant (LVNPP) in Alto Lucero, Veracruz. The complex is owned and regulated by Comisión Federal de Electricidad (CFE), the government-owned electric company. The amount of electricity these reactors provide the Mexican people seems to vary, but most sources agree it is less than 4%. Mexico has said that it plans on adding two more reactors to the Laguna Verde complex, but those have yet to materialize.
According to Wiki, LVNPP has been presented with numerous awards–from breaking the world record for reaching 250 days of continuous operation during the first generation cycle in 1991 to the Nuclear Excellence Recognition Manager’s Award by WANO in 2010. It was even given the Socially Responsible Enterprise award by the Mexican Centre for Philanthropy in 2009. Upon further investigation, I found some disturbing information.
In 1999, the World Association of Nuclear Operators (WANO) reported that the Laguna Verde complex has had a high number of shutdowns which have weakened the operating systems, personnel with inadequate training, lack of proper management and organization and obsolete equipment, all of which pose potential safety hazards. WANO completed a second evaluation in 2009, however, those results were never made public. Greenpeace somehow got a hold of some of the paperwork and surprise, surprise–serious safety concerns.
In the event of a major nuclear accident, 80 percent of Mexico would be affected. According to geologists, Laguna Verde is an accident waiting to happen. In addition to the substandard operating procedures and faulty equipment, the very location of Laguna Verde is a risk.
The Laguna Verde complex is situated on the Zacamboxo fault line along the Mexican Volcanic Belt with an active volcano five miles away. This location is prone to seismic activity, not limited to earthquakes, volcanic eruptions, and tsunamis.
On April 6, 2011, an earthquake with a magnitude of 6.5 did hit the area. Yet CFE denied any damage was done to the power plant.
Veracruz is also subject to frequent hurricanes due to its location. The wind current at Laguna Verde blows in from the Gulf of Mexico over central Mexico–right over Mexico City with a population of 20 million.
On September 10, 2010, Hurricane Karl forced the suspension of operations at the Laguna Verde facility, but CFE reported no damage.
A former employee of the Laguna Verde facility reported several serious incidents while he was employed at the complex. On November 25, 1989, and Abril 27, 1990, radioactive vapor escaped from the main line. CFE denied it. In December 1989, 130 thousand liters of radioactive water was released into the lake. CFE said no such thing occurred. In 2005, there was a fire on the roof of the building that houses the reactors. CFE doesn’t know anything about that one either. In 2006 and 2013, the power plant was in a state of emergency shut-down, but no information was ever released to the public.
How is it that the facility is given award after award for quality control, non-contamination, and preservation of natural resources?
The best thing that La Yacata has going for it in the event of a nuclear disaster is that it is far away from the Laguna Verde facility.
That doesn’t mean no radioactive exposure could ever occur. In 1984, the lack of disposal regulations and detection strategies in Mexico permitted radioactive material from scrap metal to expose at least 4,000 individuals over the period of a month and throughout 4 states to harmful levels of radiation.
In 2013, 2015, and 2016, radioactive materials were stolen from transport vehicles. Thieves, drivers, bystanders, police officers, cleanup crews were exposed to high doses of harmful radiation. Those were just 3 that were recovered–how many more incidents have their been that have been covered up?
Well, we will just have to hope for the best on this one then!
Surviving Mexico 