Date: Mon, 26 Jan 1998 18:24:41
To: Urban Ecology list
From: UE Executive Director <ueexecdir@igc.apc.org>
Subject: viaje a la frontera

Last weekend I traveled with Global Exchange to the San Diego-Tijuana border. The trip was titled 'Beyond Borders: Labor & the Environment on the Border' and was intended to examine the effects of NAFTA on employment conditions and the environment in Tijuana.

As many of you are probably aware, NAFTA was accompanied by 2 side agreements about labor and the environment among the US, Mexico & Canada. The agreements were intended to provide 'protection' during the expected shift in the manufacturing industry as NAFTA lifted tariffs and trans-border transportation costs. As projected, manufacturing and assembly plants closed throughout the US and internationally, and resurfaced along the northern border of Mexico. From Tijuana to Matamoros (across from Brownsville), there are thousands of 'maquiladoras,' employing an estimated 1 million people.

The lack of environmental protection through monitoring & proper disposal of the substances used in manufacturing processes in instances that we viewed in Tijuana is striking. Among other things, we viewed:

• an 'industrial park' (an area usually owned by one person that houses several maquiladoras without a single fire hydrant
• a former lead smelter (where batteries were broken down), abandoned with several hundred tons of lead & lead byproducts in an open yard
• a drainage pipe that leads straight from Tijuana's sewage system to the Pacific Ocean, without passing through a treatment plant

We were hosted by several organizations that are working for independent unions and women's rights in the maquiladoras (women make up the majority of plant workers). There, again, the failure of NAFTA or its side agreements to set even minimal standards for maquiladora employees is glaring. A negative pregnancy test is required, though illegal, at many plants just to get a job. 28-day contracts are common, at the end of which proof of not being pregnant must be shown again to get one's contract renewed. Mexican labor costs are the cheapest in the world: the total cost of a plant laborer (including government-mandated fees & social security & insurance taxes) is $1.47 per hour. The official Mexican labor unions are widely recognized to have little to do with defending workplace rights but rather reaping large payments from both maquiladora owners and government officials to maintain the status quo.

Coming from Texas, where the border is highly permeable and crossed daily by thousands of people from both sides, I was struck by the militarized zone that separates Tijuana from the US. With 3 fences, daylight-imitating lights, helicopters, horses, Broncos, and a sophisticated communications system, undocumented people are simply outgunned. The 3-fence strategy has had the effect of pushing people trying to cross further east, ending up in the mountainous area east of San Diego, where temperatures can reach freezing in the summertime.

At first glance, the Bay Area seems to be removed from the problems of the immediate border area that sparked initiatives like 187. Without having read up on employment statistics, though, the agricultural areas around the region, as well as the service jobs in big cities like San Francisco and San Jose, probably draw large numbers of undocumented persons.

Further, one of the main points of most of the groups we spoke with was that they support free trade, they are glad that the maquiladoras form a source of employment--but what they oppose is the exploitation of labor and the environment in the pursuit of profit. Thus, they sought the improvement of standards in law and policy--for example, Mexico has no community-right-to-know law requiring disclosure of the chemicals used in manufacturing processes.

Several groups identified land use as an important means through which they sought to accomplish policy work and community empowerment. One group representing indigenous migrant workers had designed a community building which could house 150 people during their migration. Another group in a very poor colonia had succeeded in raising money for a local school. Construction had recently been completed, and they were embarking on a new stage in community planning & development.

It's clear that the US should demand more of Mexico as its free trade partner. It's also clear that we should defend the laws & policies we have here that provide so much opportunity to US citizens to affect the way land is used, the environment is protected, and workplace rights are upheld. The behavior of American-owned companies when such legal accountability doesn't exist is on display just a few feet south of the border.

How does all of this related to UE? Simply put, the tour reinforced my drive to find ways for the Bay Area to become more environmentally sustainable and socially just. I HIGHLY RECOMMEND a Global Exchange tour for any & all Board members, staff, volunteers and members. The border tour was the first in a series called 'Exploring California', which was partially funded by the Irvine Foundation. Other topics this year will include the lettuce industry in the Central Valley, the forestry battles in Humboldt County, the garment industry in the Bay Area, and a wine tour in Sonoma, among others. Although the group clearly has a liberal bent, they did a good job of providing numerous perspectives during the border tour. Prices are affordable, and tours range from 1/2-day to a full week. I'll bring some of their material to the Board meeting this Thursday.

Last, but not least: the staff of Global Exchange were very interested to hear about UE and our work. We discussed a possible joint Sustainability Tour sometime this year.

Rachel Peterson
Executive Director, Urban Ecology