Global Policy Forum

By Diego Cevallos*

The ''green'' provisos of the free trade treaty between the United States, five Central American countries and the Dominican Republic say the parties will act in ''good faith'' and will create an Environmental Affairs Council, an arbitration group and perhaps a secretariat. Now these promises are being used as artillery by the treaty's defenders and detractors alike.

Saying the trade treaty is pro- or anti-environment is a battlehorse for those debating the eventual ratification this year by the parliaments of the Latin American countries involved (Costa Rica, El Salvador, Guatemala, Honduras, Nicaragua and Dominican Republic) and the U.S. Congress. Approval by these legislative bodies is essential for the entry into force of CAFTA (Central American Free Trade Agreement), signed by the parties in early 2004. Chapter 17 of the treaty, dedicated to the environment, opens with the statement that the parties have the full right to establish their own levels of environmental protection and to act with discretion in regards to investigations, actions before the courts, regulations and compliance with related standards.

Patricia Panting, Honduran environment minister and current holder of the rotating presidency of the Central American Environment and Development Commission (CCAD), says she is satisfied with what was negotiated because the treaty's inclusion of a chapter on the environment is in itself a victory. CAFTA's environmental section includes concrete measures and a 10-year timetable, and will help Central America obtain financial support from the United States for environmental projects, Panting told Tierramérica. Marco González, CCAD executive secretary, agreed with Panting, underscoring that the Central American countries negotiated CAFTA as a bloc, and that the creation of the Environmental Affairs Council was crucial. The signatory nations committed themselves to applying their own laws and priorities, as well as ensuring policies and standards that provide and promote ''high levels of environmental protection'', and working to improve the related laws and policies.

But according to the non-governmental organisation Citizens Trade Campaign, an umbrella of U.S. environmental, labour, consumer and farm groups, CAFTA will let the Central American partners maintain their ''poor'' environmental standards. Citizens Trade, alongside other NGOs, is lobbying in the United States against ratification of the treaty. Lobbying in Central America are various civil society groups that fear the dismantling of tariff protections and the opening of borders between partners that are so unequal in terms of economic power and development. The United Nations Environment Program (UNEP) says 74 percent of Central America's farmland is degraded, and that the region is one of the most vulnerable to natural disasters.

''In CAFTA the environment is treated only in a symbolic way,'' Yuri Melini, director of the Centre for Legal and Social Action, a Guatemalan NGO, told Tierramérica. A similar opinion is heard from Angel Ibarra, president of the Salvadoran Ecological Unit, who predicts that CAFTA will turn Central America into a ''piñata to be exploited by whoever wants to,'' which will translate into widespread ecological damage. The treaty's environmental clauses ''are pure rhetoric, because there are no mechanisms or measures that require countries to protect their natural resources,'' he said in a conversation with Tierramérica.

But the treaty does entail some concrete measures, such as establishing the Environmental Affairs Council, with representatives from environmental ministries and agencies. The Council must meet within the first year after CAFTA takes effect, and annually thereafter, ''unless the parties agree otherwise, to monitor implementation and review the progress of the treaty and to consider the state of the cooperation activities.''

It also stipulates that any person from the member countries will be able to file complaints of non-compliance with environmental legislation before a secretariat or other appropriate body that the parties designate, and which will have the authority to draft rulings. Furthermore, the parties to the treaty pledge to establish within six months of ratification an arbitration group made up of 28 independent experts to deal with environmental disputes.

Meanwhile, there are NGOs that do approve of CAFTA. The Salvadoran group Salvanatura, Costa Rica's Foundation for the Restoration of Nature, and the Honduran Network of Ecologists for Sustainable Development, along with 10 other groups, in January sent a letter to U.S. lawmakers praising the treaty. The norms established by the accord ''are a positive precedent in the efforts for environmental protection in Central America,'' they said.

With independence of opinions about CAFTA, the NGOs recognise the environmental progress made in the region, where ''citizen participation has been promoted in projects related to protected areas, biodiversity, protection of flora and fauna, and issues like territorial regulation and environmental quality,'' said Guatemalan activist Melini.

Minister Panting, meanwhile, underscored the achievements made in institutional integration, based on the creation 15 years ago of CCAD, as part of the Central American Integration System. ''In 1990 no country in the region had environmental legislation. Now there are laws, institutions and environmental management,'' she said. According to González, CCAD has promoted important regional environmental policies as well as the ratification of key international agreements, like the conventions on biodiversity and climate change.

About the Author: Diego Cevallos is an IPS correspondent. Jorge Grochembake contributed reporting from Guatemala. Originally published Feb. 12 by Latin American newspapers that are part of the Tierramérica network. Tierramérica is a specialised news service produced by IPS with the backing of the United Nations Development Programme and the United Nations Environment Programme.