Upon competition of a ten year research project which analyzes the effect of air pollution and death rates in US cities, Lester B. Lave and Eugene P. Seskin conclude that the mortality rate in the US could shrink by seven percent with a similar if not greater decline in disease incidence if industries followed EPA regulations in cutting back on certain pollutant emissions. The authors claim that this reduction is sufficient to add one year to average life expectancy. Originally published in 1977.

Inhaltsangabe: Inhaltsverzeichnis:Table of Contents: List of Figures and Tables Abbreviations 1.Introduction 1.1Delineation of the Problem 1.2Methodology 2.Definition 2.1Definition of Maquiladora Industry 2.2Definition of NAFTA 3.The Mexican Maquiladora Industry 3.1Historical Background 3.2Legal Framework 3.2.1General Legal Foundation 3.2.2Specific Import Regulations 3.2.3Specific Export Regulations 3.3Forms of Involvement 3.3.1Wholly Owned Subsidiary 3.3.2Shelter Operation 3.3.3Subcontract Operation 3.4Opening of a Maquiladora Facility 3.5Overview: Numerical Data 4.Business Related Opportunities and Problems 4.1Opportunities of Operating Maquiladoras 4.1.1Maquiladora Industry: An Export Processing Zone 4.1.2Low Mexican Labor Costs 4.1.3Sales Potential 4.1.3.1Proximity and Access to the U.S. Market 4.1.3.2The Mexican Domestic Market 4.1.3.3Maquiladora Industry: The Bridge Between North and Latin America? 4.2Problems of Operating Maquiladoras 4.2.1Available Workforce 4.2.2Inadequate Infrastructure 4.2.3Increased Logistics Costs 4.3Location Decision: Border Area Versus Inland 5.Economic Related Benefits and Detriments 5.1Benefits for the Mexican Economy 5.1.1Employment Effects 5.1.2Monetary Effects 5.1.3Technological Effects 5.2Detriments to the Mexican Economy 5.2.1Economic Disintegration 5.2.2Cultural Disintegration 5.2.3Urbanization 5.2.4Environmental Effects 5.2.4.1Air, Water, and Soil Pollution 5.2.4.2Environmental Regulations 6.Changes due to the Enactment of NAFTA 6.1The North American Free Trade Agreement 6.1.1Summary on NAFTA 6.1.2NAFTA: The End of the Maquiladora Program? 6.2NAFTA and Rules of Origin 6.2.1General Purpose of Rules of Origin 6.2.2Determination of Originating Goods 6.2.3Effects on the Maquiladora Industry 6.2.3.1The Asian Investment Boom 6.2.3.2Move Towards Mexico's Interior 6.2.3.3Further Mexican Integration Agreements 6.3Environmental Dumping or Protection? 7.Critical Review and Future Prospects Appendix Bibliography

What are the political economic conditions that have given rise to increasing numbers of social environmental conflicts in Mexico? Why do these conflicts arise in some local and regional contexts and not in others? How are social environmental movements constructed and sustained? And what are the alternatives? These are the questions that this book seeks to address. It is organized into three parts. The first provides a panoramic view of social environmental conflicts in Mexico and of alternatives that are being constructed from below in rural areas. It also provides an analysis of the recent reforms to open the country’s energy sector to private and foreign investment. The second is comprised of local-level case studies of conflict (and no conflict) in diverse geographic locations and cultural settings, particularly in relation to the construction of wind farms, hydraulic infrastructure, industrial water pollution, and groundwater overdraft. The third explores alternatives from below in the form of community-based ecotourism and traditional mezcal production. A concluding chapter engages comparative and global analysis.

Air and water pollution blighted northern Mexican cities long before the North American Free Trade Agreement (NAFTA) was a glimmer on the political horizon. Not surprisingly, when NAFTA became a political reality, environmentalists argued that commercial competition would weaken environmental standards in Canada and the United States and industrial growth in Mexico would further damage its weak environmental infrastructure. NAFTA's huge success in expanding free trade has concentrated population and environmental abuse at the US-Mexico border where it is most visible to Americans. Many environmental groups blame NAFTA and, drawing on its experience, now oppose new trade initiatives.Does the NAFTA record on the environment since 1994 justify its criticism? In this seven-year analysis, the authors review NAFTA's environmental provisions, including a side accord--the North American Agreement on Environmental Cooperation (NAAEC), the situation at the US-Mexican border, and the trends in North American environmental policy. They emphasize that the environmental problems of North America were not the result of NAFTA and the NAAEC was not devised to address all of them. The authors recommend ways to better NAFTA's environmental dimension in all three countries, and improve living conditions where economic growth is greatest--at the US-Mexican border. It makes more sense to tackle the shortcomings than to lament NAFTA and the economic growth it promotes.