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Submission

Time Ceramics

Submission ID: SEM-24-001
Party concerned: Mexico
Date filed: February 1, 2024
Submission Status: Closed

Latest Update: June 5, 2024

The Secretariat determined that the revised submission again did not meet the Article 24.27(2) and (3) criteria, and terminated the process.

Summary of the matter addressed in the submission:

The Submitter asserts that Mexico is failing to effectively enforce its environmental laws with regard to unauthorized land use change and water extraction.

The Submitter asserts that Mexico is failing to address the environmental impacts of a ceramics factory, including unauthorized forest land use change to build the factory, inadequate environmental impact assessment, the unauthorized development of water wells, and the alleged lack of water extraction concessions for the factory’s operations. Accordingly, the Submitter alleges that Mexico is failing to effectively enforce land use change laws to authorize the forest clearing activities that are alleged to have occurred on the site. The Submitter makes similar allegations regarding the failure to effectively enforce water laws for the development of wells and water extraction, raising concerns about the overexploitation of the aquifer in the Valle de Tulancingo region.

Names and citations of the environmental laws in question:

The Submitter cites provisions from the Mexican Constitution, the General Act on Ecological Balance and Environmental Protection (Ley General del Equilibrio Ecológico y la Protección al Ambiente), the General Act on Sustainable Forest Development (Ley General de Desarrollo Forestal Sustentable), and the National Waters Act (Ley de Aguas Nacionales) and related regulations.

Submitter(s):

The name of the Submitter is protected from disclosure in accordance with ECA Article 16(1)(a)

Submission Timeline

February 1, 2024

The Secretariat began reviewing the submission under Articles 24.27(2) and (3) of the USMCA.

Submission - Submission authored by Submitter(s) on 01/02/2024

Acknowledgement - Communication to Submitter(s) authored by Secretariat on 01/02/2024

March 4, 2024

The Secretariat notified the Submitter(s) that the submission did not meet all the Article 24.27(2) and (3) criteria, and that the Submitter(s) has 60 days to submit a revised submission.

Determination - Secretariat Determination under Article 24.27(2) and Article 24.27(3) of the CUSMA/USMCA authored by Secretariat on 04/03/2024

May 3, 2024

The Secretariat received additional information and began to analyze it.

Other Documents - Other document authored by Submitter(s) on 03/05/2024

Acknowledgement - Communication to Submitter(s) authored by Secretariat on 07/05/2024

June 5, 2024

The Secretariat determined that the revised submission again did not meet the Article 24.27(2) and (3) criteria, and terminated the process.

Determination - Secretariat Determination under Article 24.27(2) and Article 24.27(3) of the CUSMA/USMCA authored by Secretariat on 05/06/2024