| Montreal, 9/11/2004 – Ms. Donna Tingley, chair of the Joint Public Advisory Committee (JPAC) of the Commission for Environmental Cooperation (CEC) of North America for the year 2004, presided over JPAC Regular Session 04-03, in Montreal, Canada, on 27 and 29 October 2004. JPAC also participated in a CEC meeting, "Building the Renewable Energy Market in North America," on 28-29 October 2004.
New Directions for the CEC
The main focus of the JPAC Regular Session was to consult the public on new directions for the CEC. The Puebla Declaration (from the 2004 Council Session) set three new priority areas for the organization: information for decision-making, capacity building, and trade and environment linkages, including NAAEC Article 10(6). These priority areas will be merged into new strategic and operational plans for the CEC, currently under development. Following this very fruitful consultation and its own deliberations, JPAC decided to provide an Advice to Council that will be issued in the near future.
Renewable Energy
JPAC has a long-standing interest in this important area. Following the meeting on building the Renewable Energy Market in North America, the JPAC Working Group on renewable energy will develop and Advice to Council for discussion with JPAC. It will be issued in the near future.
Call for Public Comments—Inherent Conflict of Interest built into the NAAEC
JPAC began its interest in this issue in the context of how decisions were being made by Council related to the Article 14 and 15 citizen submissions process. At its Regular Session in June, JPAC agreed to extend the analysis to NAAEC as a whole and commissioned a report, which analyzes the institutional issue and provides recommendations on ways to address it. JPAC has decided to issue a call for public comments on this important matter. Details are available at <www.cec.org>.
Changes in JPAC Membership
Gustavo Alanís-Ortega, Laura Silvan and Mindahi Bastida from Mexico have been replaced by Eduardo Rincón Mejía, Carlos Rincón Valdés and Héctor Sepúlveda. This was also the last meeting for Canadian members Donna Tingley (chair for 2004), Merrell-Ann Phare and Ann Bourget.
Dates for the next meeting are not yet established.
The CEC was established by Canada, Mexico and the United States to build cooperation among the North American Free Trade Agreement partners in implementing NAAEC, the environmental side accord to NAFTA. The CEC addresses environmental issues of continental concern, with particular attention to the environmental challenges and opportunities presented by continent-wide free trade.
JPAC is composed of fifteen members, five from each of the three NAFTA countries, and is responsible for providing advice to the CEC Council on any matter within the scope of NAAEC.
For more information on these meetings, please contact:
Carla Sbert, Acting JPAC Liaison Officer
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