----- forwarded message ----- Date: Tue, 19 Sep 2000 20:20:49 -0700 From: "Richard McManus" <[EMAIL PROTECTED]> News and Views you don't have to lose: MEXICO CITY, Sept 10 (Reuters) Mexico produces about 10 million tons of toxic waste a year, according to environmentalists, much of it disposed of illegally in landfills or even rivers. Most of the waste comes from petrochemicals, canneries and metal plating facilities. "The 'not in my backyard' syndrome is now taking hold in Mexico," says Gary Gallon, a Canadian environmental consultant who advises governments and companies on the viability of projects.... For the time being Mexico's hazardous waste management has had the wind knocked out of it". Grass-roots opposition, spearheaded by the local community and backed by Greenpeace Mexico, led to local protests and eventually led to the closure of a US company's waste managemment facility. Other waste management firms have been divesting their Mexican assets. Industry analysts and consultants predict that growing democracy in Mexico is spurring grass-roots environmental activism.
