Free trade pact raises environmental fears
THE NORTH America Free Trade Agreement (NAFTA), which will bind the USA, Mexico and Canada into a common market, has everyone wondering what the pact will do to the environment of the region. The key concern is that US companies hiding behind less stringent Mexican norms will reduce their own standards or simply relocate.
President George Bush also has the task of elections with his electorate that seem more concerned with job issues than liberalised trade. The fear is that NAFTA will prompt US companies to dump workers at home in favour of cheap Mexican labour.
Mexican President Salinas de Gortari has made it clear that Mexico has no intention of becoming "a haven for US polluters. We will not allow industries to contaminate or damage the environment, while taking advantage of the treaty."
In USA, Democrat president-aspirant Bill Clinton is still unhappy. He says the agreement does not do enough to protect the environment or workers. But his political opponents accuse him of playing to the unions with an eye on the labour vote.
In 1988, Mexico adopted a comprehensive environmental law that is entirely based on the US legislation and experiences of pollution and likely hazards. But as USA moves to legislate stricter environmental laws, Mexico could claim exemption on the grounds that these would constitute unfair and protective trade practices.
There are also fears that US firms will take advantage of Mexico's health, safety and labour laws that are easier on industry. Though Mexico is a signatory of the International Labour Organisation, it is well known that safety standards in its factories are not rigorously implemented nor are rules pertaining to occupational health hazards strictly implemented. The win-win-win situation that the pact foresees as industry and trade booms could easily turn out differently.