| Montreal, 20/03/2008 – The Secretariat of the Commission for Environmental Cooperation (CEC) issued today a determination in which it dismissed submission SEM-06-006 (Los Remedios National Park), concerning Mexico’s alleged failure to effectively enforce its environmental law in connection with Los Remedios National Park, in Naucalpan, State of Mexico.
On 9 November 2006, Asociación Fuerza Unida Emiliano Zapata en Pro de las Áreas Verdes (the “Submitter”) filed a submission with the Secretariat asserting that a real estate company is carrying out construction activities inside Los Remedios National Park, a protected natural area created by an executive order in 1938. In addition, the Submitter asserted that Mexico exceeds its authority by proposing to revoke the protected status of Los Remedios, since the law does not provide for repeal of the executive order that created a national park. It maintains, moreover, that Mexico permitted the degradation of natural resources in Los Remedios and did not take action to restore the site.
On 16 July 2007, the Secretariat received Mexico’s response. Today, the Secretariat has determined that the submission does not warrant the preparation of a factual record. The Secretariat concluded that the assertion of tree felling within the park is a pending matter before the Mexican courts, and therefore decided to proceed no further with the analysis of this issue. With respect to the repeal of the executive order that gave the park protected status, the Secretariat deemed that that was a legal—and not factual—question and that in any case, such repeal would lead to a change of jurisdiction—from federal to state—but not to complete revocation of protected status, as the Submitter asserts. Neither did the Secretariat recommend a factual record in regard to Mexico’s obligation to restore the site in question, since this is not among the documented assertions in the submission. Having determined that preparation of a factual record is not warranted, the Secretariat has notified the Submitter and the Council of the CEC that it will proceed no further with consideration of this submission.
The CEC was established under the North American Agreement on Environmental Cooperation (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 top environment ministers (or the equivalent) of Canada, Mexico and the United States.
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 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.
For more information, please visit the Citizen Submissions on Enforcement Matters page on the CEC website.
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