Tired of the on-again, off-again talks to make Chile part of the North American Free Trade Agreement, Canada and Chile decided three years ago to write their own accord. What emerged was a carbon copy of NAFTA, right down to the environmental and labor side-agreements. Now, 18 months after the pact was signed, there’s disagreement on how successful the endeavor has been. While businessmen sing the accord’s praises, NGOs point to cases of environmental destruction here despite apparently solid laws. Reflecting NAFTA, Chile and Canada’s environmental side-agreement essentially requires the countries to enforce their own laws and provide for a complaints procedure. It also calls on them to exchange expertise and technology to solve environmental problems. But cultural, economic and historical... [Log in to read more]
