FREE ESSAY ON ENVIRONMENTAL ISSUES CONCERNING NAFTA

ENVIRONMENTAL ISSUES CONCERNING NAFTA

In the early 1990's, the United States, Mexico, and Canada, all produced the North
American Free Trade Agreement in an attempt to increase trade and reduce tariffs between
the countries. With the creation of NAFTA, the world's largest trading bloc was formed
with a population of around 400 million people in 1997. The financial figures were also
outstanding in that the three countries had a combined $8 trillion the same year. There
have been many concerns since the initiation of the agreement. Issues over cheap labor,
environmental concerns, highway safety, and who will gain control over the economy, have
been facing officials for some time now. 
A major issue concerning NAFTA was the ability of Mexican trucks being allowed to cross
US borders. In 1995, Texas highways were suppose to be opened up to Mexico, followed by
total US access by the year 2000. Due to public and political pressure, as well as safety
concerns, President Clinton put a limit on the number of trucks that can enter the United
States. This creates a problem due to the fact that a NAFTA panel ruled that barring the
trucks violates the trade agreement. Newly elected president, George W. Bush, however
wants to open up the border and allow cross-bordering trucks to enter the US. This is a
fear for many because they feel like it would be near impossible to enforce US
regulations and perform proper inspections on all truck traffic entering the country.
Emissions and the weight of the trucks are the two biggest key factors in regulating the
traffic. Many questions have been brought up over this controversial topic, and many
Texas officials believe that these questions must be answered before the border is
allowed to be open up completely.
My feelings on this topic lean more to the side that proper regulations and inspections
should be performed before those trucks are allowed to enter. Any problem that would
arise from Mexican trucks towards the environment or highways would probably not even be
paid for by the Mexican government. That means that US citizens will more than likely pay
for any problem by an increase in taxes. I also feel that by opening up the border for
business, you open up the border for illegal drug trafficking. This will create more
problems with drug control in the US. In addition, there will be a greater flow of
illegal immigrants into the US. This will cause more of a burden on the economy,
especially in Texas and California, and will take away job opportunities for those that
are struggling to make a living in the US. I think that a middle ground must be
established for the preservation of this agreement, but it must not be at the expense of
what the US has been trying to achieve the last few decades.