Mexico City, January 5th, 2021.
Last January 1st, 2021, the amendments to Exhibits II, VIII and IX to the Basel Convention on the Control of Transboundary Movements of Hazardous Wastes and their Disposal (herein after Basel Convention), entered into force.
As per said amendments, transboundary importers and exporters of hazardous wastes must take the following into consideration:
1.Those interested in importing, into Mexican territory, plastic wastes consisting exclusively of a non-halogenated polymer or resin, selected fluorinated polymers or blends of polyethylene, polypropylene and / or polyethylene terephthalate, provided the waste is destined for recycling in an environmentally sound manner and almost free of pollution and other types of waste (entry B3011); are not obliged to request authorization from the Comprehensive Management of Risky Materials and Activities General Office of the Ministry of the Environment and Natural Resources (herein after DGGIMAR for its acronym in Spanish), however, they are subjected, in any case, to prove before the Federal Attorney of Environmental Protection, the presumption of the non-hazardousness of the waste it is to mobilize.
2.Nevertheless, authorization from DGGIMAR must be secured for the import of:
- Plastic wastes, including the mixtures of plastic wastes, except those covered by entries A3210[1] of Exhibit VIII and B3011[2] of Exhibit IX of the Basel Convention.
- Hazardous plastic wastes (entry A3210 of Exhibit VIII).
For such purposes, approval must be requested from DGGIMAR, through proceeding SEMARNAT-07-029 “Authorization for the Transboundary Movement of Hazardous Wastes and other Wastes foreseen in International Treaties”.
It is important to mention that, due to the sanitary contingency we are currently facing, DGGIMAR is only receiving applications Tuesdays and Thursdays, between 9:30 a.m. and 14:00 p.m., prior appointment.
The lawyers of our Environmental Law, National Waters and Climate Change practice group remain at your service to clarify any query you may have over this topic.
S I N C E R E L Y,
Daniel Del Río
Ricardo Evangelista
Mariana Arrieta
[1] Hazardous plastic wastes.
[2] Plastic wastes consisting exclusively of a non-halogenated polymer or resin, selected fluorinated polymers or blends of polyethylene, polypropylene and / or polyethylene terephthalate, provided the waste is destined for recycling in an environmentally sound manner and almost free of pollution and other types of waste.
