El Carmen Nature Reserve

About the Program
CEMEX's Carmen Nature Reserve program is designed to conserve species native to the Big Bend-Rio Bravo biological corridor. Employees work with government officials, NGOs and a university to conserve the area, which is part of the Big Bend-Rio Bravo biological corridor. Activities have included prescribed burns to stabilize the native plant community and regular monitoring via remote sensing and vegetative sampling. The main objectives are to protect and restore desert and pastureland in the Chihuahua Desert, reintroduce and recover native species populations, reestablish the biological corridor across the border, provide ecosystem services and provide an open-air laboratory for researchers. The main conservation targets are mammals and include American bison, black bear and bighorn sheep. This project started in 2001 and its area totals over 185,000 acres.

Practices and Impacts

• The region is especially prone to frequent and intense forest fires due to extensive cattle ranching and lack of water. Working with partners, CEMEX provides yearly training to local fire brigades and community members to help prevent and mitigate forest fires.
• CEMEX established a reserve of 5,000 hectares for the reproduction of desert bighorn sheep (Ovis canadensis mexicana), which were first reintroduced in 2000. Annual monitoring shows a gradual increase in the population density of the bighorn sheep due to habitat protection and removal of domestic livestock. 
• The team monitors a resident population of black bears (Ursus americanus), which are endangered in Mexico. 
• In an effort to return the American bison to its historic range, CEMEX introduced a herd of about 40 genetically pure bison to the reserve in 2019. In the span of three years, the population increased to 70 individuals.