Industrial Growth and Water Pollution on the Mexico U.S. Border: the Case of Tijuana San Diego

Industrialization and free trade are the basis for economic growth along the Mexico-U.S. border. They are also a cause of ecological disequilibria and social conflict. Water pollution, in particular, is an issue of great importance, not only because of the scarcity of water in the region, but also b...

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Bibliographic Details
Published in:New solutions 1994-01, Vol.5 (1), p.48-54
Main Author: Lemus, B E
Format: Article
Language:English
Subjects:
Assembly plants
Border areas
Citizen participation
Environmental conditions
Environmental policy
Industrial waste
Mexico
Offshore assembly industry
Pollution control in industry
Tijuana, Mexico
United States and Mexico
Water pollution
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Summary:Industrialization and free trade are the basis for economic growth along the Mexico-U.S. border. They are also a cause of ecological disequilibria and social conflict. Water pollution, in particular, is an issue of great importance, not only because of the scarcity of water in the region, but also because of the widespread practice of discharging raw sewage and toxic substances by foreign firms that operate as maquiladoras. (A maquiladora is an assembly plant that is allowed to temporarily import raw materials and parts duty-free into Mexico under the free trade regime on the border. It then pays workers low wages and exports the finished products, paying import duties in the U.S. only on the value added to the finished products.) In this paper, I argue that there are many policy factors responsible for this poor use of the environment. The lack of public participation, resulting from ineffective policies, is also contributing to further degradation and to lower standards of living. After describing the problem of water pollution in the city of Tijuana, I examine some of the sources of such contamination. Finally, I offer some suggestions for more active public participation in implementing better water control laws and policies.
ISSN:1048-2911