Nafta

The United States signed an agreement with all the North American countries. [The North American Free Trade Agreement (NAFTA)] This gave the U.S. the right to place their large factories in other countries, one of them, Mexico. It also gave them the right to obviously trade their products freely. So after the agreement was signed, the corporations went ahead and built their factories exclusively in depressing little "dictatorships" like Mexico. Where collective bargaining and governmental concern for anything other than the next opportunity to better up are nonexistent. Mexican/American factories continue to spew toxic filth into tributaries of the Rio Grande lined with squalid shacks housing of their underpaid employees.
Many people concerned for the care of the environment think that in the absence of NAFTA, the amount of hazardous waste from Mexico would simply stop. The problem is the increasing industrial activity in the border area, with associated growth in the generation of hazardous waste.
The damage to the environment and public health caused by illegal dumping of hazardous waste along the United States/Mexico border has increased. The increase in border industrial activity has led to an increase in the creation of hazardous waste, with data showing an increase in hazardous waste production since January 1994. Much waste still simply is washed down the drain. And only 70 of the 352 industries generating hazardous wastes reported proper disposal. Which I personally think is astonishing.   And according to a 1995 report, one quarter of the hazardous waste from the "maquiladora" zone, approximately 44 tons daily, has an unknown end. Each year, seven million tons of toxic wastes are, without control, illegally dumped in drains and marine waters. Only one percent is under surveillance in the country, the inspection of the maquiladora industry is virtually non-existent which is a great environmental problem for Mexico. But like anyone cares. This industry both... [continues]

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