| Montreal, 3/06/2004 – On 25 May the Commission for Environmental Cooperation (CEC) of North America received a new revised version of the submission (SEM-04-001) submitted by Francisco H. Garza Vara on behalf of Genaro Meléndez Lugo and José Javier, José Genaro, Miguel Ángel, Carlos Ariel, Juan Antonio, Iris Elidia and Cruz Adriana Meléndez Torres (the Submitters). The submission asserts that Mexico is failing to effectively enforce its environmental laws by not properly processing their complaint against the companies Ecolimpio de México, SA de CV, and Transportes J. Guadalupe Jiménez, SA, and but not penalizing those companies. The Submitters argue that the operation of both companies causes serious damage to the environment and to their properties, and that the improper management of hazardous waste seriously endangers their health and physical well-being.
The submission, submitted on 27 January 2004, was dismissed because it did not meet the requirements of Article 14(1) of the North American Agreement on Environmental Cooperation (NAAEC). On 16 March of the same year, the CEC received the revised version of the submission, which was again dismissed on 20 April 2004, since the Secretariat of the CEC concluded that the information provided was insufficient to clarify whether the purpose of the submission was to further enforcement of the law or to harass an industry. As the reason for the dismissal was different, the Secretariat once more granted the Submitters the 30-day period to file a submission meeting the requirements of Article 14(1) of the NAAEC.
In this new version, a section of which was requested to be held confidential, the legal representative of the Submitters sets forth the reasons why he considers that the submission meets the requirement in Article 14(1)(d) of the NAAEC. He clarifies that the reason for filing the submission was to further the enforcement of the law and not to harass an industry, and he asserts that he would not obtain an economic benefit from the submission. In another section, the Submitters clarify the observations made by the Secretariat with regard to the progress of the citizen complaint procedure (denuncia popular) referenced in the submission.
The Secretariat of the CEC will analyze this new version of the submission (SEM-04-001: Hazardous Waste in Arteaga) to determine whether it now meets the requirements under Article 14 of the NAAEC.
The citizen submissions mechanism of the CEC enables the public to play a whistle-blower role on matters of environmental law enforcement. Under Article 14 of the North American Agreement on Environmental Cooperation (NAAEC), any person or nongovernmental organization may submit a claim alleging that a NAFTA partner has failed to effectively enforce its environmental law. Following a review of the submission, the CEC may investigate the matter and pursue a factual record of its findings.
|
