Frontera NorteSur December 2000-January 2001

El Diario reported on Sunday, November 26, 2000 that the Mexican National Institute for Nuclear Investigation (Instituto Nacional de Investigaciones Nucleares, ININ) had begun depositing what is believed to be radioactive waste near Aldama, Chi, about 28 kilometers (approximately 18 miles) from the Chihuahua state capitol, Chihuahua City. The site where trucks were going to unload cargo was formerly the Uramex installation where uranium was mined years ago. The area is already considered an environmental problem because of the previous uranium operations that took place there.

The Tuesday, November 28, 2000 El Diario reports that the site had already been closed on Monday and that trucks carrying waste material were escorted out of the state to the Durango border by state law-enforcement officials. Four large trucks carrying an estimated one-hundred tons of waste were taken to the state line yesterday after they were denied entrance to the dump and after samples of their cargo were taken for analysis at the Cimav (Centro de Investigaciones Avanzadas) laboratories. Signs on the trucks' windshields read in Spanish, "This vehicle transports radioactive material. Only trained people may handle this material. Inappropriate handling may cause health risks. Do not unneccessarily remain near this vehicle." The trucks also bear the radioactive symbol on them as well.

On the morning of Monday, November 27, 2000 staff from the federal environmental department Semarnap, the department of Urban Development (Secretaría de Desarrollo Urbano del Gobierno), Cimav and local government inspected the four trucks that had arrived and the 250 tons of waste that had been deposited on the site already.

Miguel Rubio, Aldama mayor, said that as the site does not have the necessary permission to operate, and as authorities were not informed of the heavy trucks' transit plans, the "El Nopal" field and the "Las Margaritas" mines have been closed. Rubio also said that the city has the support of federal officials to not become a radioactive-waste dump.

The waste is allegedly coming from ININ facilities in Salazar, Mexico State. For over 30 years, according to El Diario, researchers have worked on reactors there that produce waste that needs to be safely stored away.

Jorge Castillo Cabrera, the Chihuahua Semarnap delegate, said that ININ told him that it did not have the necessary authorization for such a project. However, other sources confirmed that material was also being left at the site.

People working at the site said they could not comment on the nature of the material being left there as it was part of a federal operation.

The El Diario article mentions that 1985 and 1988 studies suggest that the area is safe for containing nuclear waste if it is properly containerized. However, if it is not, underground water supplies to Aldama and Chihuahua City could become contaminated in the future.

Not mentioned in any of the articles is the issue of site security. Radioactive material obtained from the area could possibly be used by terrorist groups to contaminate surface water or in some other way harm the environment.

Cd. Juárez Joins Neighbors and Declares Itself a Toxic-Waste Free Zone

The Ciudad Juárez city council approved an ordinance that prohibits the establishment of toxic-waste and radioactive-waste disposal sites within the city's borders. Border environmental groups are currently pushing for the entire region to adopt similar policies. El Paso, TX, El Paso County, Las Cruces, NM, Presidio, TX, Carlsbad, NM, and Villa Ahumada, Chihuahua have already passed the desired ordinances. Ciudad Acuña, Coahuila is quickly expected to follow. 

City officials also discussed environmental problems related to insufficiently treated waste water that is used to irrigate fields. The water contains high percentages of oil and fats and kills wheat crops when it is applied to them. The water is also contaminating the land itself and long-term damage is feared.

Source: El Diario, October 24, 2000.  Article by Francisco Luján.

Norfluor Fine Settled with Delivery of Fire Fighting Equipment

Norfluor, also known as Solvay, a Ciudad Juárez producer of hydrofluoric acid, and the city of Juárez settled a disputed fine when Norfluor provided the city with 42 complete outfits for fire fighters. The value of the equipment, 345,000 pesos (approximately US$36,000), is almost equal in value to the 340,000 peso fine that the city Environment and Civil Protection Department imposed on Norfluor. Norfluor appealed the fine to the courts and this settlement appears to be another way in which Cd. Juárez and Norfluor are rapidly trying to resolve their differences. Last month, the city agreed to give Norfluor lower dumping fees if it took its byproduct to the city landfill instead of stacking it in mountains on plant property. With the delivery of the fire-fighting equipment all litigation between the city and Norfluor has been resolved.

Source: El Diario, November 19, 2000. Article by Juan Manuel Cruz.

US$23 Million Donated to Protect Mexican Environment

The Global Environment Fund has approved two donations for a total of US$23 million to support ambitious environmental-protection projects in Mexico. One of the projects includes the protection of the area known as "La Sepultura" in Chihuahua.

These donations are added to two previous donations given in May and July, 2000. The money comes from a trusteeship established by countries that participate in the World Bank. So far this year the GEF has set aside US$61 million dollars for Mexico.

"These donations recognize Mexico's biodiversity and that it is an important issue," said José Luis Samaniego, Coordinator for International Affairs for the Department of the Environment, Natural Resources and Fishing (Secretaria de Medio Ambiente, Recursos y Pesca, Semarnap).

These two latest donations, approved during a three-day meeting held in Washington DC permit the funding of two projects for protected areas in ten Mexican states.

The GEF will also continue supporting a pilot program in Mexico City that plans to substitute current buses with hydrogen-powered vehicles over the next seven years.

The largest portion of the donation, US$16 million, is destined to finance the Protected Areas Consolidation Program (Programa de Consolidación de Areas Protegidas) or SINAP II, which will have a total cost of US$76.7 million. The rest of the programs funding will be provided by the Mexican government in a gradual process.

Samaniego explained that through this project twelve environmentally sensitive and important areas will be added to ten other areas from the first phase of the project known as SINAP I.

"Overall, we have identified 39 environmental areas considered to be in critical condition, the 22 that have now been incorporated account for 70% of the total area," said Samaniego.

The 12 new areas include Tehuacán-Cuicatlán, on the border between Oaxaca and Puebla; the Alto Golfo in Baja California; Cuatro Cienegas in Coahuila as well as Chichinautzin-Zempoala between Morelos and Mexico City; Sierra de Alamos, El Pinacate and the Grand Altar Desert, Sonora; Pantanos de Centla, in Tabasco; Banco Chinchorro, in Queretaro; La Sepultura, in Chihuahua; Sierra de Huautla, in Morelos; Sierra de la Laguna, in Baja California Sur, and La Encrucijada in Chiapas.

The second portion of money, US$6.7 million dollars, is to be used to support efforts in the Sierra Gorda conservation zone in Queretaro. This money will be used mainly by the Sierra Gorda Ecological Group (Grupo Ecológico Sierra Gorda) for the administration of the area.

Source: El Diario, November 4, 2000.

Migratory Birds Seek Sanctuary in Chihuahua

During the winter months the state of Chihuahua is home to four million waterfowl from Alaska, Canada, the continental United States, and other species of birds from Central and South America. To date it is calculated that 85,000 of these birds are currently found in Ciudad Juárez.

José Manuel Ochoa Barraza, of the Mexican Fauna Protection Association (Protección de la Fauna Mexicana, Asociación Civil) estimates that this year 20,000 geese, 15,000 gray cranes and 50,000 ducks of different species, have already arrived.

Over the year, especially in winter and summer months, the different species of birds arrive in flocks of 10,000-20,000 looking for a place to reproduce and a place to feed in fields and wetlands.

The Secretary of Environment, Natural Resources, and Fishery (Secretaria del Medio Ambiente, Recursos Naturales y Pesca, Semarnap) indicated that the birds travel from Alaska, Canada, and the continental United States to Mexico utilizing three migratory routes: DP (from the Pacific), DC (from the Center) and DG (and from the Gulf).

Most of the birds used the central route on their way into Mexican territory.  In the state of Chihuahua the sites most commonly frequented by the birds, between 20% and 40%, are La Babicora near Madera and Gómez Farias, Namiquipa and Cuauhtémoc.  They also visit the San Rafael, Bustillos, and the Fierro Lakes, as well as the Papigochi Dam in the northwest, Ascensión and Santa María in the north, and La Boquilla Dam in the south.

The birds chose places where they can find water, food, protection, and the appropriate climate, especially areas near corn, oatmeal, peanut, barley and alfalfa.

Semarnap estimates that 560,000 birds come to the state of which 400,000 are ducks, 100,000 are geese, and 60,000 are cranes. Only 1% is of these birds are taken during hunting season in Mexico as opposed to the 25% in the United States.

Beside the duck, geese and cranes, other species of birds, in particular sparrows and swallows from Central and South America, also seek Chihuahua as shelter during the winter.

The most common birds are white geese, often seen near dams.  The white goose known as the "garcita vaquera"  because of its smaller body, has already begun to arrive and has been spotted in trees near the Roberto Fierro Lobos Airport and the Zarco neighborhood in Juárez.

Some farmers in the state complain that the birds affect their harvests, but have never eliminated their crops. This is the case in Chihuahua according to Barraza who is an ecologist preparing his masters thesis in Animal Production in the Protection of Mexican Fauna.

The state of Chihuahua, like the rest of Mexico and the United States, protects the white geese but in actuality there exists an overpopulation of the bird.  Between five and six million geese exist causing problems in nesting and feeding.  It is thought that when vegetation becomes scarce in their areas of reproduction, the population will decrease.  This overpopulation causes problems for other species as well such as the white crane.

Among proposals to stabilize the situation are an increase in crop production and the removal of eggs from nests to lower birth rates.

The Mexican wildlife census is conducted every three years using funds from  the United States Department of Game and Fish, Dumac, Semarnap, the University of Idaho, and the Hornocker Wildlife Institute.  The last census was conducted in January of 1999 and found 229,000 geese in the Mexican wetlands.  The count was done using aerial photography.  It was also found that 62.5% of the 229,000 birds were found in Chihuahua where thirteen sites held 130,480 geese.

Source: El Diario, November 12, 2000.  Article by Candelaria Garcia.

Matamoros Businesses Inspected for Environmental Contaminants

The Environmental Control Office (Dirección de Control Ambiental) is slowly inspecting Matamoros businesses that produce contaminants and have closed those that do not comply to environmental standards. Sonia Chacón del Angel, of the Environmental Control Office stated that a new operation has been initiated to make sure that all autoshops, carwashes, and other establishments that produce motor-oil residues meet environmental standards. The purpose of the inspections is to get businesses to conform to standards and stop contaminating the environment. According to Chacón, a lack of sufficient staffing is causing the inspections to go more slowly than planned, but all contaminant-producing businesses will be inspected.

Recently the Environmental Control Office, and the National Council of Transformation Industry (Cámara Nacional de la Industria de la Transformación) held a conference for businesses on the correct handling of the hazardous waste that they produce. At the conference, business owners were also informed of fines they will face if they are caught in violation of regulations. These sanctions range from administrative action to the closing of businesses.

Source:  La Mañana, November 6, 2000.  Article by Efraín Martínez Félix.

Matamoros Medical Waste Incinerators Shut Down After Complaints

Due to irregularities in their performance, two medical-waste incinerators at the SECAM company were shut down by the Federal Environmental Protection Office in Matamoros (Procuraduría Federal de Protección al Ambiente, PROFEPA) on November 3, 2000. According to Francisco Guerra Gómez of the PROFEPA, the incinerators were closed after an inspection revealed that they were functioning at less than perfect performance.

Guerra said that the inspection was made after complaints were filed by residents of the La Canasta ejido. According to Guerra the SECAM was emitting awful odors that were bothering residents.

With the closure of SECAM, infectious waste must be shipped to Tampico or Monterrey for incineration.

Source: El Mañana, November 6, 2000. Article by Juan Pablo Sánchez.

Canadian Organization To Help Mexican Industry Protect the Environment

The North American Environmental Cooperation Commission (Comisión para la Cooperación Ambiental de América del Norte, CCAAN) awarded 28 credits to small Mexican industries hoping to improve their environmental efforts, according to Erica Phipps, representative for the Canadian organization.

After taking part in a workshop called "Forming Alliances to prevent environmental contamination, new focuses and tools in aid of the environmental effort," Phipps stated that many studies were conducted before awarding these credits to the industries.

The studies helped demonstrate that production processes can be environmentally efficient without making large investments.

"The purpose is to collaborate for a cleaner environment . . . the CCAAN is a commission that focuses on developing [environmental] capacities in the production processes of small- and medium-sized companies," said Phipps.

The workshop was part of an effort to distribute and exchange information about themes and preventive strategies in production activities.

"This way a better contact between he three countries will exist," said Phipps referring to Mexico, the United States, and Canada.  She also pointed out that this diffusion of information takes place by promotional brochures and videos on a "trilateral basis to benefit the environment."

The workshop which ended on November 7, 2000, presented issues like the Environmental Administration System and its use in public politics, and as an industry initiative to promote corporate environmental responsibility.