SOS Gulf of California: A World heritage site in danger
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SOS is the international distress signal at sea. Today, we are using it for a sea that needs our attention: the Gulf of California, in Baja California Peninsula, Mexico.
In Loreto, community action helped overturn the decree that designated the port for international navigation in May 2026. The government committed to developing a new navigation regulatory instrument and updating the Loreto Bay National Park Management Program.
Four months later, neither has been published. Loreto remains a coastal-navigation port and cruise ship requests for 2026–2030 have been rejected, but the long-term regulatory tools we were promised are still pending.
Decisions are being postponed. The threats are not.
Meanwhile, in Guaymas, Sonora, a federal judge has halted AMIGO LNG, preventing construction while a constitutional challenge is resolved. The project, however, has not been permanently cancelled and previously received environmental authorization from ASEA.
Different places. Different cases. The same Gulf.
Gas projects, cruise ships and maritime traffic, ocean warming, new infrastructure, and gaps in protection and governance cannot be considered separately. Their impacts accumulate across one interconnected marine ecosystem.
The Islands and Protected Areas of the Gulf of California remain on UNESCO’s List of World Heritage in Danger, and UNESCO has raised concerns about fossil-gas infrastructure projects that could affect the property’s Outstanding Universal Value.
The Gulf of California is a living system under pressure. We cannot wait for the next threat before we act.
We need science, prevention, effective regulation, protection and governance — now.
SOS was created as a call for help at sea.
Today, let’s make it a call for help for the sea.
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S.O.S. GULF OF CALIFORNIA
Help us make this call visible.
