The Quintana Roo Speleological Survey (QRSS) was established in 1990 for the safe exploration, survey and cartography of the underwater and dry

cave A cave or cavern is a natural void in the ground, specifically a space large enough for a human to enter. Caves often form by the weathering of rock and often extend deep underground. The word ''cave'' can refer to smaller openings such as sea ...

s and

cenote A cenote ( or ; ) is a natural pit, or sinkhole, resulting from the collapse of limestone bedrock that exposes groundwater. The regional term is specifically associated with the Yucatán Peninsula of Mexico, where cenotes were commonly used for ...

s of

Quintana Roo Quintana Roo ( , ), officially the Free and Sovereign State of Quintana Roo ( es, Estado Libre y Soberano de Quintana Roo), is one of the 31 states which, with Mexico City, constitute the 32 federal entities of Mexico. It is divided into 11 mu ...

Mexico Mexico (Spanish: México), officially the United Mexican States, is a country in the southern portion of North America. It is bordered to the north by the United States; to the south and west by the Pacific Ocean; to the southeast by Guatema ...

, supported by the

National Speleological Society The National Speleological Society (NSS) is an organization formed in 1941 to advance the exploration, conservation, study, and understanding of caves in the United States. Originally headquartered in Washington D.C., its current offices are in H ...

. The survey principally acts as a data repository for explored sites within the state of Quintana Roo and distributes summary statistical tables through its webpage, which as of February, 2011 included 208 underwater cave systems with a total surveyed length of , and 50 caves above the water table with a total length of . The geographical area for the data archived in the QRSS is essentially the whole of the state of Quintana Roo, which extends along the Caribbean coast of the

Yucatán Peninsula The Yucatán Peninsula (, also , ; es, Península de Yucatán ) is a large peninsula in southeastern Mexico and adjacent portions of Belize and Guatemala. The peninsula extends towards the northeast, separating the Gulf of Mexico to the north ...

, from Cancun and south to the capital of

Chetumal Chetumal (, , ; yua, label=Yucatec Maya, Chactemàal , ) is a city on the east coast of the Yucatán Peninsula in Mexico. It is the capital of the state of Quintana Roo and the municipal seat of the Municipality of Othón P. Blanco. In 2020 i ...

situated on the border with

Belize Belize (; bzj, Bileez) is a Caribbean and Central American country on the northeastern coast of Central America. It is bordered by Mexico to the north, the Caribbean Sea to the east, and Guatemala to the west and south. It also shares a wate ...

. The explosive urban and tourism based development within the

Riviera Maya The Riviera Maya () is a tourism and resort district south of Cancun, Mexico. It straddles the coastal Federal Highway 307, along the Caribbean coastline of the state of Quintana Roo, located in the eastern portion of the Yucatán Peninsula. H ...

and the

Costa Maya Costa Maya is a small tourist region in the Othón P. Blanco, Quintana Roo, municipality of Othón P. Blanco in the state of Quintana Roo, Mexico, the only state bounded by the Caribbean Sea to its east. This municipality is close to Chetumal (capit ...

is leading to increasing and widespread environmental stresses. The documentation of the flooded and dry cave networks and cenotes provided by the QRSS is of fundamental importance in regional and site specific scale planning and management of development, water resources, waste disposal facilities, hazardous material handling site selection, and so forth. Certified cave divers may obtain an information package on underwater survey and cartography opportunities in Quintana Roo.

References

Speleology Geography of Quintana Roo Natural history of Quintana Roo Sistema Sac Actun and Sistema Dos Ojos Environmental organizations based in Mexico Non-profit organizations based in Mexico Environmental organizations established in 1990 1990 establishments in Mexico {{Caving-stub

See also

References