Canada, U.S., Mexico to vote on investigation into U.S. efforts to protect right whales
CBC
A complaint, filed under the new North American free trade agreement, will force Canada, the U.S., and Mexico to pass judgment on efforts by the United States to protect North Atlantic right whales.
"We recommended an independent investigation. We are looking forward to hearing a response and the position from the governments," Paolo Solano, legal director for the Commission for Environmental Cooperation, said in Halifax this week. "We expect this to be resolved soon."
He was in Halifax as part of an unrelated commission forum on climate change in the shipping industry.
The commission is mandated under the Canada-U.S.-Mexico Agreement (CUSMA) to investigate claims a country is failing to effectively enforce its environmental laws.
Last year, an American environmental group, Oceana, filed a complaint against the United States about protections for the North Atlantic right whale.
In June the commission recommended an investigation proceed on the grounds "there are a number of actions that could be implemented from the U.S. government," said Solano.
A three-member council of a cabinet-level environmental leader from each government will decide whether to proceed.
They are Steven Guilbeault, minister of Environment and Climate Change from Canada, Michael Regan, administrator of the Environmental Protection Agency in the U.S. and María Luisa Albores González, secretary for the Environment and Natural Resources, in Mexico.
Guilbeault's office did not provide comment for this story.
The commission has already rejected arguments from the U.S. government that an investigation, or factual record as it is called, was unnecessary.
The U.S. said it is upholding laws to protect the critically endangered whale species from gear entanglements and vessel strikes.
"A factual record is not warranted because it would not shine additional light on the issues … as central questions of fact related to the implementation of the laws at issue have already been made publicly available," the U.S. said in response to the complaint.
It also said the issue was currently before several American courts.
"We consider that those pending proceedings didn't stop this submission from proceeding and to eventually recommend a factual record," Solano told CBC News.
