According to the office, it requested “environment consultations” from Mexico. This is the first case under the U.S.-Mexico/Canada free trade pact. The first step in the dispute resolution under the trade agreement is consultations, which were in effect from 2020. It could lead to trade sanctions if it is not resolved.
Mexico’s government has abandoned all attempts to establish a fishing ban in an area where vaquitas may still be found. Vaquitas are drowned by nets that were illegally set for another fish, the Totoaba.
U.S. Trade Representative Katherine Tai stated that “USTR is committed protecting the environment” and requested this consultation to ensure Mexico meets its USMCA environmental commitments. She added, “We look forward working with Mexico to resolve these issues.”
Sarah Uhlemann is the international program director for the Center for Biological Diversity. She stated that this was a major move that could save the little porpoises’ lives from extinction.
Uhlemann stated in a statement that illegal fishing was out of control in Mexican waters and that the vaquita is being charged the highest price. “We are glad that the U.S. government is taking Mexico into account for violating its environmental obligations, and threatening the existence of the vaquita.”
After the Thursday complaint was made public, Mexico’s Economy Department stated that the “Mexican government reaffirms their commitment to the proper implementation and fulfillment of its responsibilities under the USMCA.”
Mexico has been doing a poor job of controlling its environment through its fishing boats, and this was their second stinging rebuke within a span of less than one week.
Monday’s ban on Mexican fishing boats from the Gulf of Mexico was in effect. This is in response to the illegal poaching of red snapper by Mexican boats for years.
Marcelo Ebrard from Mexico, the foreign relations secretary, stated that incidents of fishing by Mexican vessels in U.S. waters are mistakes and it can be difficult for the US to determine the line dividing the two countries’ territorial waters.
Critics say that it is more likely that Mexican boats go where the fish are and not make the same navigational errors over and over. Many repeat offenders have been apprehended by the U.S. Coast Guard, with several Mexican fishermen being captured in U.S. waters more than 20 times since 2014.
Mexico’s worst nightmare is now reflected in its plight at the vaquita marina, of which only 10 may survive in the Gulf of California.
Mexican authorities granted Sea Shepherd permission to return to the Gulf (also known as the Sea of Cortez) to assist in conservation efforts. However, the group is no longer allowed to remove illegal gillnets.
This was just the latest example of how the Mexican government seemed to be more concerned with sovereignty and fishing than it was about protecting the species.
Mexico relies on Sea Shepherd boats for the removal of illegal nets that trap, drown, and kill vaquitas. However, it does little to stop poachers from attacking environmentalists’ vessels. Over the past six years, the group has removed approximately 1,000 long and heavy nets.
The environmentalists had to leave the Gulf in January 2021 following a New Year’s Eve attack by fishermen who rammed a Sea Shepherd vessel with a boat. One of those fishermen later died from injuries suffered in the attack.
The task of finding and removing nets since then has been mostly left to Mexico’s Navy. This has not done much to stop fishermen setting up nets to catch totoaba. Totoaba is a rare fish in China, and can be bought for thousands of dollars per kilogram.
President Andres Manuel Lopez Obrador expressed his disapproval of foreign interference and his desire for balance between fishermen’s interests and those of endangered species.
Lopez Obrador stated in June that “we don’t need foreigners telling our country what to do” or imposing sanctions on its fishermen. Lopez Obrador insisted that an agreement could be reached that would balance fishing and productive activities while also taking care of the species.
This attitude was evident in the government’s July decision to end fishing restrictions around the area that holds the last vaquitas.
This measure replaces the “zero tolerance” fishing zone in the upper Gulf. It also includes a sliding scale of penalties for more than 60 fishing boats that are seen in the area at once.
