CEC factual record on Mexico's enforcement for loggerheads in the Gulf of Ulloa (SEM-20-001, USMCA Chapter 24)
- More than 200 of my loggerheads died in each of 2012, 2013, 2018, 2019 and 2020, according to the CEC factual record. Commission for Environmental Cooperation
- Nearly 1,000 of my loggerheads were stranded at San Lazaro beach in 2013, according to the CEC factual record. Commission for Environmental Cooperation
- Of the 908 of my turtles observed in the on-board programme from 2015 to 2018, 27 were killed as bycatch. Commission for Environmental Cooperation
Cemda and the Center for Biological Diversity filed a submission on 17 December 2020. The CEC Council instructed a factual record on 3 April 2023 and the CEC published it on 22 April 2024, the first under USMCA Chapter 24.
As stated in the CEC factual record.
Status As of April 2024: the CEC published the factual record on 22 April 2024, the first under USMCA Chapter 24; no later step is recorded in the sources reviewed.
- Gulf of Ulloa fishers — Landings averaged 115,834 t a year in 2006–2022; the value figure is inconsistent in the sources reviewed Commission for Environmental Cooperation
- Loggerheads in the Gulf of Ulloa — More than 200 deaths in each of 2012, 2013, 2018, 2019 and 2020; nearly 1,000 stranded at San Lazaro beach in 2013 Commission for Environmental Cooperation
What happened
Cemda and the Center for Biological Diversity filed a submission (SEM-20-001) with the Commission for Environmental Cooperation (CEC) on 17 December 2020, concerning Mexico's enforcement for loggerheads in the Gulf of Ulloa. The CEC Council instructed a factual record on 3 April 2023, and the CEC published it on 22 April 2024, the first factual record under USMCA Chapter 24.
The parties concerned include Mexico's Semarnat, Profepa and Conapesca, the CEC Secretariat, and about 1,228 fishers in 21 localities. Landings in the Gulf of Ulloa from 2006 to 2022 averaged 115,834 t a year; the value figure is inconsistent in the factual record, which gives "$735 billion pesos" in its text and a Table 1 total of 737,779,677 pesos.
The factual record records more than 200 loggerhead deaths in each of 2012, 2013, 2018, 2019 and 2020, and nearly 1,000 stranded at San Lazaro beach in 2013. An on-board programme from 2015 to 2018 covered 24,313 trips, observed 908 turtles and recorded 27 killed as bycatch. A 2021 proposal to cut the mortality limit from 200 to 90 a year was removed in 2023.
The CEC stated that there is "no single hypothesis or a combination of hypotheses explaining the mortality rate".
- 2020Cemda and the Center for Biological Diversity file submission SEM-20-001 (17 December)
- 2021Proposal to cut the loggerhead mortality limit from 200 to 90 a year
- 2023CEC Council instructs a factual record (3 April); the 2021 proposal on the mortality limit is removed
- 2024Factual record published (22 April), the first under USMCA Chapter 24
What was said
“no single hypothesis or a combination of hypotheses explaining the mortality rate”
How it looked
Shown
Recorded
- CEC factual record (22 April 2024): more than 200 loggerhead deaths in each of 2012, 2013, 2018, 2019 and 2020; nearly 1,000 stranded at San Lazaro beach in 2013.
- On-board programme 2015–2018: 24,313 trips, 908 turtles observed, 27 killed as bycatch.
- A 2021 proposal to cut the mortality limit from 200 to 90 a year was removed in 2023.
- Gulf of Ulloa landings 2006–2022 averaged 115,834 t a year.
Who gained
Reached nature or the ground
Gained elsewhere
In court and with insurers
Lawsuits and rulings
- 2020–2024Outcome not on recordCEC submission SEM-20-001 under USMCA Chapter 24: Mexico's enforcement for loggerheads in the Gulf of UlloaCommission for Environmental Cooperation (CEC) · International court · Cemda and the Center for Biological Diversity → Mexico
The submission was filed on 17 December 2020. The CEC Council instructed a factual record on 3 April 2023 and the CEC published it on 22 April 2024, the first under USMCA Chapter 24. The sources reviewed do not record a determination on Mexico's compliance. Commission for Environmental Cooperation
Insurers
What nature saw
Nature's report opens this page. Below: further outcomes measured on the ground.
What we don't know
Money
- None on record Gulf of Ulloa landings value, Table 1 total (pesos) — 737,779,677 pesos; the text of the factual record gives "$735 billion pesos".
Court
- Unclear CEC submission SEM-20-001 under USMCA Chapter 24: Mexico's enforcement for loggerheads in the Gulf of Ulloa: outcome not on record.
Figures
- Insufficient Landings value: Table 1 total; the text of the factual record gives "$735 billion pesos".
Record
- Disputed Conflicting figures: the value of Gulf of Ulloa landings is inconsistent in the factual record (text "$735 billion pesos"; Table 1 total 737,779,677 pesos).
- None on record Unexplained: the CEC states that there is "no single hypothesis or a combination of hypotheses explaining the mortality rate".
Did the harm stop?
The factual record gives more than 200 loggerhead deaths in each of five years up to 2020 and states no single hypothesis explains the mortality rate. A 2021 proposal to cut the mortality limit from 200 to 90 a year was removed in 2023.
Who paid?
No amounts are on record beyond the landings figures.
Sources
International bodies
- CEC news: loggerhead turtle factual recordCommission for Environmental Cooperation ·
- Factual record, SEM-20-001 (Loggerhead Turtle)Commission for Environmental Cooperation · 2024-04-22
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