Overview
- The municipal government says the El Caracol project, which began in January 2026, has already inundated 123.8 hectares and built 2.5 kilometers of bordos with 10 radial bordos complete and three more near finish.
- Officials plan to make 550 hectares inundable within about a year and turn roughly 250–275 hectares into an ecological recreational park over the next 12 to 18 months.
- Technical advisers describe a lentic system that moves water cell by cell through still-water basins so natural filtration and plant uptake reduce contaminants without intensive chemical treatment.
- The municipality says the work was enabled after clearing irregular occupants who had settled the site since 2019 and that the project is coordinated with San Salvador Atenco and state and federal agencies.
- Authorities estimate direct benefits for about 200,000 nearby residents with wider regional gains for millions through aquifer recharge, fewer floods, more green space and return of native birds and plants to the ex-lake Texcoco basin.