The federal Environmental Protection Prosecutor´s office (Profepa) is investigating the accusations and has announced that if, in fact, the reefs are being damaged, the restoration project could be suspended.

Hurricane Wilma whipped across the coast of Quintano Roo last October, causing unprecedented damage to homes and hotels alike.

Much of Cancún´s famous white sand was washed away by the storm and both the government and the tourism industry have been working frantically to recover.

Since Feb. 1, the Jan de Nul, a Belgian firm hired by the Mexican government, has been dredging sand off the ocean floor and pumping it onto the beaches, hoping to entice tourists back for spring break.

The beach recovery program is scheduled to continue through April 20 for a total cost of US$20 million.

Aracely Domínguez, president of the environmental group Mayab, asked Profepa to suspend beach restoration to avoid damage to the reefs, at least until Jan de Nul complies with the standards set by the Environment Secretariat at the start of the project.

"If they continue like this, the damage they could cause, and in fact are already causing to the reefs, is critical," she said,

"They haven´t met the (contractual) conditions, they put refill where they shouldn´t, they dredged outside of the authorized area . they didn´t install bio-safe dividers to retain the sediments."

Profepa said it is investigating the complaints filed by various environmental groups. Profepa representative Guadalupe Martínez said the agency has also received complaints of environmental damage in the National Marine Park outside of Cancún.