USTR Looks to Mexico on Environment Case

The Administration is hoping to see a quick resolution of consultations with Mexico over protection of relating to the protection of the critically endangered vaquita porpoise, the prevention of illegal fishing and trafficking of totoaba fish, Deputy US Trade Representative Jayme White said last week at Customs and Border Protection’s first forum on green trade.

Last year, the United States requested the first-ever environment consultations under the environment chapter of the US-Mexico-Canada Agreement.

US trade officials raised the dispute during discussions last week with their Mexican counterparts when the USMCA Free Trade Commission met in Cancun, according to Mr. White.

“Since the initiation of these consultations, we have been working with Mexico to develop a plan of action to enhance Mexico’s enforcement of its fisheries-related environmental laws and implementation of its USMCA environment commitments. We are hopeful that Mexico will soon agree to a plan given the urgent nature of the issues at stake,” he told the audience.

The Administration is not trying to impose new laws on Mexico, but simply to make sure Mexico is complying with its obligations under the USMCA, he said.

WTO Fisheries Agreement
The Deputy USTR pointed to the World Trade Organization’s Agreement on Fisheries  Subsidies reached last year as another example of the Administration’s efforts to ensure environmental and trade policies work together.

“This agreement will help support the livelihood of fishers and workers in the United States and globally, and contribute to the sustainability of fish stocks worldwide by prohibiting subsidies to those engaged in illegal, unreported, and unregulated fishing; subsidies for fishing overfished stocks; and subsidies for fishing on the unregulated high seas,” he said.

The Administration will continue working at the WTO “to seek additional, ambitious disciplines on harmful fisheries subsidies to protect our oceans and fisheries resources,” he continued.

At the WTO, Asia Pacific Economic Cooperation forum, Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development and bilateral and regional negotiations, the Administration is “championing ways to extend the life of goods and materials through reuse, repair, remanufacturing, and recycling throughout our economy.”

USTR also is focused on the role that trade and trade facilitation plays in enabling remanufacturing activities as a key element of a more circular economy.

Steel Arrangement
Mr. White also pointed to ongoing negotiations for a Global Arrangement on Sustainable Steeland Aluminum with the European Union as an example of USTR’s environmental efforts. The aim is to reach an agreement to address both carbon intensity as well as global steel and aluminum excess capacity in two energy-intensive sectors.

“From the beginning, we’ve been clear that we see the potential for a new trade paradigm, to address two fundamental issues – carbon intensity and non-market excess capacity– to address the serious threat that market distortions pose to workers, producers, and our climate,” he said. “USTR is working with government counterparts, industry, and stakeholders to develop an innovative approach to trade in these sectors, and will incentivize industrial decarbonization through a market-based approach.”

In the ongoing negotiations on the Indo-Pacific Economic Framework, the Administration is pursuing an ambitious set of environmental provisions, including climate change. “We are building on previous trade agreements and seeking to break new ground, such as on issues like climate and trade, resource efficient and circular economies, renewable energy and clean energy technologies and sustainable finance,” he said.