| Montreal, 4/03/1996 – The Commission for Environmental Cooperation otherwise known as the NAFTA Environment Commission -- is reviewing a petition filed by a private citizen of Edmonton, Alberta. The petition alleges that the government of Canada and the province of Alberta failed to effectively enforce laws protecting the wetlands of Big Lake, Alberta, the natural habitat of many species of fish and migratory birds.
The laws cited in the petition include the Fisheries Act, the Department of Environment Act, the Clean Water Act, the Environmental Protection and Enhancement Act and the Waste Water and Storm Drainage Regulation. The petitioner claims that failure to enforce these laws has resulted in "on-going environmental pollution and degradation."
This is the first time a Canadian individual or non-governmental organization has filed a petition with the NAFTA environment commission. So far, Alberta is the only province in Canada which has officially ratified the environmental side accord to NAFTA.
Under Article 14 of the North American Agreement on Environmental Cooperation (NAAEC), any person or organization may file a petition with the Secretariat of the CEC alleging that one of the NAFTA countries is failing to effectively enforce its environmental law. The Secretariat may recommend to the environment ministers of the three countries that a factual record be prepared to explore such an allegation.
The Council of Ministers -- CEC’s governing body -- is composed of Canadian Environment Minister Sergio Marchi, U.S. EPA Chief Carol Browner and Mexican Secretary of the Environment Minister Julia Carabias. The CEC is equally funded by the three NAFTA partners.
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