Environmental Policy in Mexico

¡Buen día!

Today I am writing a two-part post on environment in Mexico. This one is about environmental policy, and the other is about agriculture.

For environmental policy, I am going to use two sources: The first being Part 1 and 2 of this extremely long report paper on  Environmental law in Mexico. You can find the link here and at the end of this. The second source is primary, where I will be asking one of my host brothers, who studies biology, about the environment and I will be using my personal observations as well.

A basic summary of Part 1 and 2 of this crazy-long article:

1. Government in Mexico can regulate the environment on two standings: The first being to protect it, and the second being to preserve and restore it.

2. "LGEEPA is the primary environmental law." This law "distributes powers between the three levels of government" and sets policies and legislation on the environment. Environmental laws can also be state-controlled.

3. There are environmental regulations that can be commissioned by both the state and the government.

4. NOM laws set certain techinical environmental standards for contaminants, waste, use of substances, and on endangered species.

5. SEMARNAT is the main governmental power concerning the environment. They oversee many environmental policies and have departments that work under them.

6. "Administrative law is strictly enforced" and is driven by the legality and the processes concerning them.

7. While Mexico has generally improved in the environment, there is still some issues.

8. "The Office of the Federal Prosecutor for Environmental Protection ... are usually outnumbered by the many matters requiring their attention ... [it] does not usually have sufficient resources to properly attend and prosecute ... to an acceptable level."

9. Not much has been done recently about the environment. There is very little concern about them in the court of law.

So in very short summary, this means that yes, there are environmental laws and practices in place but they are not hugely enforced.

Now, present the interview I had with one of my host brothers, I will only present new information. (aka. information that is not said earlier):

Tell me the state of the environment here in Mexico

• Environmental education is mediocre. People have opportunities to learn more about it, but they don't want to and it is not required.
• There is pollution and national reserves are shrinking just a bit.
• Land that protection efforts are focused on is really good land. Protected land is rich in species and resources.

What's the deal with trash, recycling, and compost?

• Trash: littering is common as a result of weak law enforcement and education on what is right.
• Recycling: There is some, but recycling is seldom a habit.
• Compost: It is more common than recycling but still rare.

What should be done?

• Mexico needs a stronger education and needs to teach future generations how to care for the environment.
• The government should spend more money on environmental education and hire and pay janitors better.
• There needs to be stricter law enforcement.

From personal observation, I have seen that yes, there is garbage in the streets, but it is definitely not worse than litter in Boston. Also, most places, such a my host family's house, lack a sufficient recycling system, and all waste is lobbed together into the category of trash.

Mexico is also composed differently than the United States in terms of land use. There are large and dense cities that are then surrounded by miles and miles of undeveloped land. However, in the states, there is no break from the city, but there are huge and vast national parks spread across the states. There are also many outdoor trash cans in Guanajuato that are changed regularly and easily accessible.

More in part two, which will be out tomorrow or the day after.

Nos vemos pronto,

Benjamín

Link: http://us.practicallaw.com/7-508-8956