| Montreal, 6/02/2009 – On 4 February 2009, Bios
Iguana, A.C. (a Mexican organization) and Esperanza Zalazar Zenil filed a
Submission
with the Secretariat of the Commission for Environmental Cooperation (CEC) pursuant to Article 14 of the North American Agreement on Environmental Cooperation (NAAEC). The submission
asserts that the Government of Mexico is failing to effectively enforce its environmental laws with regard to the protection of the
Cuyutlán Lagoon, Manzanillo, which—according to the submitters—represents 90 percent of wetlands in the state of Colima, Mexico,
and is the fourth-largest wetland in the country. The submission further asserts that Mexican authorities granted favorable
environmental impact authorizations to two gas projects, without following a proper review under the applicable environmental law.
The CEC Secretariat is currently reviewing the submission to determine whether it meets the criteria of
NAAEC Article 14(1).
The Secretariat’s executive director, Mr. Felipe Adrián Vázquez-Gálvez, has recused himself from involvement in all matters
related to this submission.
For more information, please visit the registry of submission
SEM-09-002 (Wetlands in Manzanillo), and the CEC’s
Citizen Submissions on Enforcement Matters webpage
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