| Puebla, Mexico, 23/06/2004 – The Commission for Environmental Cooperation (CEC) today marked its tenth anniversary with the adoption of a Puebla Declaration, charting the next decade of environmental cooperation among Canada, Mexico and the United States.
The CEC Council, composed of the three federal environment ministers, met in Puebla, Mexico, to direct the work of the CEC and identify opportunities and challenges for protecting and enhancing the North American environment.
"This occasion marks an important moment for environmental cooperation in North America. We know that many environmental problems require us to work together. We also know that strengthening environmental performance in our three countries will benefit us all," said Alberto Cárdenas Jiménez, Mexico's Secretary of Environment and Natural Resources on behalf of the Council. "For these reasons, we reaffirm our commitment to the CEC and define a new direction for the future. Our vision is to ensure that our air is cleaner, our water purer and our biodiversity better conserved and protected as our countries' economic relationship grows."
This year, the CEC Council reviewed the findings and recommendations of an independent Ten-year Review and Assessment Committee (TRAC) that examined the effectiveness of the environmental side accord to NAFTA, the North American Agreement on Environmental Cooperation (NAAEC).
The Council applauded the valuable work of the trinational TRAC committee, thanking Pierre Marc Johnson, Daniel Basurto, Jennifer A. Haverkamp, John F. Mizroch, Robert J.D. Page and Blanca Torres for their efforts.
The Puebla Declaration reaffirms the three governments' commitment to the CEC and outlines three priority areas to guide the next decade of collaboration to protect and enhance the North American environment. The Council priorities are improved environmental information to support decision making, capacity building emphasizing strengthened environmental management in Mexico, and further understanding of trade and environment linkages.
Council members thanked the CEC's Joint Public Advisory Committee for its continuing insight informed by public consultation. In closing, the Council expressed its gratitude to Mexico for hosting this annual meeting. The twelfth annual session of the CEC will be held in Quebec City, Canada, during the week of 20 June 2005.
For more information on the priority areas outlined above, you may read the full Puebla Declaration at <www.cec.org>.
Media inquires may be directed to Spencer Tripp at (514) 773-6237.
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