| Montreal, 18/04/2000 – The Commission for Environmental Cooperation (CEC) has dismissed a Submission on Enforcement Matters that alleges a failure on the part of the United States to effectively enforce sections of its Endangered Species Act and the Migratory Bird Treaty Act. The submission (SEM-00-003), brought forward by the Hudson River Audubon Society of Westchester, Inc. and Save our Sanctuary Committee, asserts that the construction of a paved, multi-purpose bicycle path through the Jamaica Bay Wildlife Refuge, in Queens, New York, will destroy critical habitat for endangered and threatened species and . . . result in the taking of migratory birds (including nests) . . ..
Under Article 14 of the North American Agreement on Environmental Cooperation (NAAEC), the Secretariat may consider a submission from any person or nongovernmental organization asserting that a Party to the NAAEC is failing to effectively enforce its environmental law. Where the Secretariat determines that the NAAEC Article 14(1) criteria are met, it may then proceed with a process that, subject to approval of the CEC Council, can lead to the development of a factual record on the matter.
With respect to SEM-00-003, based on the Secretariat's understanding of the status of the potential bicycle path project, it appears that the submission alleges a prospective rather than an ongoing failure to effectively enforce environmental laws, and therefore does not meet the requirements of Article 14(1). Other failings of the submission relate to the failure to provide support for its assertions that the proposed bicycle path would destroy critical habitat of listed species or take migratory birds in violation of the Migratory Bird Treaty Act.
The CEC was established by Canada, Mexico and the United States in 1994 under the environmental side agreement to NAFTA, known as the North American Agreement on Environmental Cooperation (NAAEC). The CEC Council, the organization's governing body, is composed of the environment ministers of Canada, Mexico and the United States. |
