WORLD TRADE
ORGANIZATIONG/TBT/N/MEX/15
27 February 2002
(02-0975)
Committee on Technical Barriers to Trade Original:  Spanish
NOTIFICATION
The following notification is being circulated in accordance with Article 10.6.
1. Member to Agreement notifying:   MEXICO
If applicable, name of local government involved (Articles 3.2 and 7.2):           
2. Agency responsible:   Ministry of the Environment and Natural Resources
Name and address (including telephone and fax numbers, e-mail and web-site
addresses, if available) of  agency or authority designated to handle comments
regarding the notification shall be indicated if different from above:   Contact Point
DGN/SE
3. Notified under Article 2.9.2 [     ], 2.10.1 [    ], 5.6.2 [    ], 5.7.1 [    ], other:           
4. Products covered (HS or CCCN where applicable, otherwise national tariff heading.
ICS numbers may be provided in addition, where applicable):   Forestry raw materials
5. Title, number of pages and language(s) of the notified document:  Emergency Official
Mexican Standard NOM-EM-001-RECNAT-2001 Establishing the Specifications,Procedures and Technical and Control Guidelines for the Use, Transport, Storage and
Processing which Identify the Legal Origin of Forestry Raw Materials  (53 pages, in
Spanish).
6. Description of content:
This Emergency Official Mexican Standard establishes the following:
1. That environmental degradation has severely affected the forest ecosystems as a
result of excessive logging and the growth of the agricultural and livestock sector which
have led to the widespread removal of forest stands, for which reason the conservation and
sustainable  use of forest resources has become a matter of national priority, since plantationand reforestation do not keep pace with deforestation.
1.1. That irrational management of natural resources in the forest ecosystems has
resulted in soil degradation and the disappearance of plant cover in forests, and
consequently the death and extinction of valuable plant and animal species.
1.2. That the severe degradation of forest and water resources - a strategic pair in terms
of national security - must be tackled decisively as a matter of urgency.
1.3. That measures to both protect and quickly increase forest cover, as well as to
conserve currently critically threatened natural resources, will shortly be implemented.G/TBT/N/MEX/15
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6. Description of content: (cont'd)
1.4. That control systems regulating the legal origin of forestry raw materials must be
established to guarantee the sustainability of forest ecosystems.
1.5. That the main cause of the water shortage is forest disappearance, which alters the
rain cycle and the filtration of rain back into, thus replenishing, the water table.
1.6. That clandestine timber felling activities have a serious negative impact on the
forest ecosystem and give rise to a higher incidence of pests, diseases and forest fires.
1.7. That it is imperative to put a stop to irregularities with regard to the extraction of
forest resources which result in the degradation of forests and other components of the
forest ecosystem.
1.8. That effective action guaranteeing the conservation and sustainable development of
forest ecosystems must be taken.
1.9. That forest disappearance and its impact on watersheds are related to the
sedimentation of rivers and dams, as well as floods and other natural disasters which have
become increasingly common and serious.
1.10. That regenerating and recovering forestry resources and the forest ecosystem is a
matter of national security.
1.11. That ongoing action needs to be carried out in favour of the conservation,
restoration and sustainable use of forestry resources.
1.12. That illegal and clandestine timber felling activities trigger off a sharp acceleration
in the degradation and disappearance of forest resources.
1.13. That Article 22 of the Forestry Law establishes that persons who transport or
engage in commercial activities or the processing of timber-yielding forestry raw materials
shall ensure, pursuant to the Regulations of this Law and the Official Mexican Standardsissued by the Ministry, that they originate from authorized felling activities.
1.14. That there is currently a proliferation of cases of forgery, duplication and reuse of
the forms used for monitoring the legal origin of  forestry raw materials, leading to a surge in
clandestine felling activities and the illegal transport of forest resources and incitingcorruption detrimental to forest ecosystems, for which reason the various sectors of forestry
activity have asked the Ministry to prepare an Emergency Official Mexican Standard.
1.15. That controls identifying the legal origin of forestry raw materials in a standard and
uniform manner throughout the national territory are urgently required.
1.16. That clandestine deforestation results in forest degradation and has a severe impact
on soil, water retention and carbon sequestration.
1.17. That there is a pressing need for soil erosion to be prevented and controlled and
restoration work undertaken.G/TBT/N/MEX/15
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6. Description of content:  (cont'd)
1.18. That the multiple use of forest ecosystems must be promoted to prevent their
fragmentation, encourage their natural regeneration and protect the species therein.
1.19. That there is an urgent need to promote the conservation and sustainable
development of forest resources, as well as prevention, advocacy and protection activities,
in order to reverse the degradation of forest ecosystems.
2. That this Emergency Official Mexican Standard is binding throughout the national
territory and aims to establish the specifications, procedures and technical and control
guidelines for identifying the legal origin of forestry raw materials.
2.1. That this Emergency Official Mexican Standard shall be binding on natural and
legal persons engaged in activities relating to the use, transport, storage and processing of
forestry raw materials.
7. Objective and rationale, including the na ture of urgent problems where applicable:
Safety
8. Relevant documents:  Diario Oficial de la Federación  (Official Journal),
21 December 2001 (available in Spanish).
9. Proposed date of adoption:
Proposed date of entry into force: }On the day following publication in theOfficial Journal (22 December 2001); valid for
six months
10. Final date for comments:   Not applicable
11. Texts available from:  National enquiry point [     ] or address, telephone and fax
numbers, e-mail and web-site addresses, if available of the other body:
Web site: http//www.economia-normas.gob.mx  (Standards catalogue)