| Montreal, 9/08/2001 – The Commission for Environmental Cooperation (CEC) has received a request from Mexico to terminate a citizen submission alleging Mexico's failure to enforce its environmental law in relation to the establishment and operation of the Cytrar hazardous waste landfill near the city of Hermosillo, Sonora, Mexico (SEM-01-001).
On 4 June 2001, the Party (Mexico) provided an initial response to the submission, informing the Secretariat of the existence of arbitration proceedings for resolving an international dispute related to the Cytrar hazardous waste landfill and requesting that the Secretariat proceed no further with the process for submission SEM-01-001, in accordance with Article 14(3)(a) of the North American Agreement on Environmental Cooperation (NAAEC).
On 13 June 2001, the Secretariat determined that it was not provided sufficient information by Mexico to determine whether the matter raised in the Cytrar II submission and that subject to the international dispute resolution proceeding to which Mexico is party are the same. Under NAAEC Article 14(3), Mexico had the opportunity until 31 July 2001 to provide a response to the submission and/or additional information on the matter subject to the arbitration proceeding.
On 30 July 2001, Mexico provided additional information concerning the matter subject to the arbitration proceeding. Mexico claims that, given "the connexity of causes [...] between the Cytrar II submission and the international dispute that is the subject of arbitration proceedings before the ICSID [International Centre for Settlement of Investment Disputes], it has been irrefutably proven that 'the matter (Cytrar II) is the subject of a pending judicial or administrative proceeding,' as stipulated in NAAEC Article 14(3)(a), and since the proceeding was officially instituted prior to the Cytrar II submission [...] the United Mexican States consider that the submission should be totally and absolutely terminated."
Mexico did not respond to the allegations of the submission with this or its previous response. The Secretariat is reviewing Mexico's responses in accordance with NAAEC Articles 14 and 15 to determine whether it should proceed no further with the Cytrar II submission, or whether a factual record is warranted.
Under Article 14 of NAAEC, the Secretariat may consider a submission from any person or nongovernmental organization asserting that a Party to 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 can lead to the development of a factual record on the matter. In accordance with Article 15(2) of NAAEC, the Secretariat shall prepare a factual record if the Council, by a two-thirds vote, instructs it to do so.
The CEC was established under NAAEC to address environmental issues in North America from a continental perspective, with a particular focus on those arising in the context of liberalized trade. The CEC Council, the organization's governing body, is composed of the environment ministers (or equivalent) of Canada, Mexico and the United States.
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