Commission for Environmental Cooperation

Summary of the matter addressed in the submission:

The Submitter asserts that agave production, as a resource-intensive industry, results in extensive land-use change and deforestation in Jalisco, which in turn contributes to desertification in already semi-arid areas of the state, major landslides and flooding in some municipalities, and aquifer depletion.

The Submitter also maintains that wastewater from the tequila manufacturing process, known as “vinazas,” is not being adequately managed, leading to its infiltration into the subsoil, unauthorized discharge into the Zula River, and consequently, deteriorating water quality. The Submitter is concerned that no tequila factories have effective systems to adequately treat the vinazas, and that Mexico is failing to enforce its environmental laws to protect water quality.

Names and citations of the environmental laws in question:

The Submitter cites the Mexican Constitution, the General Law of Ecological Balance and Environmental Protection (Ley General del Equilibrio Ecológico y la Protección al Ambiente), National Water Law (Ley de Aguas Nacionales), Agrarian Law (Ley Agraria), and Mexican Official Standard NOM-EM-037-FITO-2002.

Submitter(s):

Name withheld pursuant to Article 16(1)(a) of the ECA