Mexico Experts Find 2,000 Ruin Sites near Maya Train Route
2020-10-18
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1Experts in Mexico said Wednesday they have found more than 2,000 pre-Hispanic ruins along the proposed path of the president's "Maya Train" project on the Yucatan peninsula.
2Scientists discovered the ruins using LiDAR elevation mapping technology.
3LiDAR involves shooting a laser at the ground through heavy vegetation to get a detailed image of the surface.
4The discovery could slow down the train project, which has already caused arguments and protests in the area.
5Critics of the project say it threatens indigenous communities and water supplies.
6The information from the mapping technology showed a total of 2,187 "archeological monuments" along 366 kilometers of the planned path.
7That covers about 25 percent of the total train route.
8 Experts already knew about the existence of some of the ruins, but some are new.
9The Maya had a large number of city-states throughout Yucatan and Central America between 2,000 B.C. and A.D. 900.
10Their ancestors still live on the peninsula and across Central America.
11The term "monument" can mean many things, such as a pre-Hispanic Maya home, or the remains of a religious building.
12Mexico's National Institute of Anthropology and History said at least 91 of the discovered ruins were large structures like plazas, or temple bases.
13Maya houses were generally small wooden structures with stone bases that were easily destroyed.
14The institute said in a statement that the builders of the train route would have to take "measures" to avoid damaging the ruins.
15It did not say whether that meant parts of the route will have to be replanned.
16In July, Mexican President Andrés Manuel López Obrador opened the building of the "Maya Train," his own special project.
17It is expected to run about 1,500 kilometers around Yucatan.
18The train will connect Caribbean hotels to areas far from the beaches that have archeological ruins.
19The train will have 15 stations to bring visitors and - hopefully -- economic growth to the mostly poor area.
20The government says it will cost as much as $6.8 billion, but others say it could cost much more.
21Critics say there was not enough study of the effects the train project will have on the environment and archeological ruins.
22Some Maya communities have taken legal steps to stop the project, arguing that it will cause environmental damage.
23I'm Susan Shand.
1Experts in Mexico said Wednesday they have found more than 2,000 pre-Hispanic ruins along the proposed path of the president's "Maya Train" project on the Yucatan peninsula. 2Scientists discovered the ruins using LiDAR elevation mapping technology. LiDAR involves shooting a laser at the ground through heavy vegetation to get a detailed image of the surface. 3The discovery could slow down the train project, which has already caused arguments and protests in the area. Critics of the project say it threatens indigenous communities and water supplies. 4The information from the mapping technology showed a total of 2,187 "archeological monuments" along 366 kilometers of the planned path. That covers about 25 percent of the total train route. Experts already knew about the existence of some of the ruins, but some are new. 5The Maya had a large number of city-states throughout Yucatan and Central America between 2,000 B.C. and A.D. 900. Their ancestors still live on the peninsula and across Central America. 6The term "monument" can mean many things, such as a pre-Hispanic Maya home, or the remains of a religious building. 7Mexico's National Institute of Anthropology and History said at least 91 of the discovered ruins were large structures like plazas, or temple bases. Maya houses were generally small wooden structures with stone bases that were easily destroyed. 8The institute said in a statement that the builders of the train route would have to take "measures" to avoid damaging the ruins. It did not say whether that meant parts of the route will have to be replanned. 9In July, Mexican President Andrés Manuel López Obrador opened the building of the "Maya Train," his own special project. It is expected to run about 1,500 kilometers around Yucatan. 10The train will connect Caribbean hotels to areas far from the beaches that have archeological ruins. The train will have 15 stations to bring visitors and - hopefully -- economic growth to the mostly poor area. 11The government says it will cost as much as $6.8 billion, but others say it could cost much more. 12Critics say there was not enough study of the effects the train project will have on the environment and archeological ruins. 13Some Maya communities have taken legal steps to stop the project, arguing that it will cause environmental damage. 14I'm Susan Shand. 15The Associated Press reported this story. Susan Shand adapted it for Learning English. George Grow was the editor. 16_______________________________________________________________ 17Words in This Story 18peninsula - n. a piece of land that juts out into the ocean 19elevation - n. a place that is high above 20indigenous - adj. the original people who lived in a place 21monument - n. an edifice built by humans to mark an event or memory 22route - n. the path a vehicle takes to get to its destination 23temple - n. a place of worship