Ciudad del Carmen is a city in the south west of the state of Campeche, Mexico. Ciudad del Carmen is located at on the south west of Carmen Island, which stands in the Laguna de Términos on the coast of the Gulf of Mexico. In 2003 the population was estimated at 132,400 people. In July of 2006 Ciudad del Carmen celebrated its 150th anniversary as a city.
The city is nicknamed 'The Pearl of the Gulf'. Ciudad del Carmen was a small city mostly devoted to fishing until the 1970s when oil was discovered in the region; since then it has grown and developed substantially. To this day Carmen is known as one of the best locations to find seafood in Mexico. As late as the early 1980s the city could long be reached only by ferry boats called 'pangas'; this changed with the construction of a causeway bridge to the mainland in the 1980s and another one in 1994 before the term of President Carlos Salinas de Gortari ended. The construction of the first bridge was motivated by the sinking of one of the island's pangas which resulted in the death of nearly everyone on-board. The bridge Puente El Zacatal constructed in 1994 is one of the longest in Latin America.
This border area at the western edge of the Yucatán Peninsula was previously part of the state of Yucatán, then of Tabasco; since 1863 it has been part of the state of Campeche. In 1840 the city had a population of about 7,000.
The city is also the seat of the state of Campeche's Carmen municipality, which includes the city and the surrounding area. In 1999 the population of the municipality of Carmen was 181,566 people, second only to capital city of Campeche. There is a sense of rivalry among the inhabitants of the two cities.
The main university in Ciudad del Carmen is the UNACAR (Universidad Autonoma del Carmen).
PetroleumIn the mid 1970s Ciudad del Carmen was transformed from a fishing and shrimping city into a hub for oil when PEMEX discovered large amounts of petroleum off the coast. Ever since Carmen has become a home for Mexican and foreign oil workers alike, including many Texans, and now houses many foreign companies.
PoliticsOn July 2nd, 2006 carmelitas voted for their mayor, and Jose Ignacio Seara of the PAN resulted elected. He will be in office until 2009
EcologyIt is unknown to what extent the oil industry is affecting the rich but fragile ecosystem of the island and the surrounding areas. The first ecological disater occurred when Ixtoc I, an exploratory oil, exploded on June 3, 1979. The disaster was the largest unintentional oil spill in history. The uncontrollable deforestation of the island, driven by a lack of planning and overpopulation, endangers the natural habitat of the native fauna. Flocks of swallows were a common feature of the island rainy season (June to October). In the current circumstances, a more resilient species of bird, a scavenger and crow-like bird known as 'picho' by the locals, is taking over the habitats of the native birds. The white sand of the seashore is widely polluted with empty bottles, metallic objects and numerous plastic items. There are no studies regarding the impact of pollution on native sea specias such us dolphins and shrimp. Ecological and social responsibility require immediate attention and actions from the part of the industry, government, educational and turistic sectors involved in this region of the world.
