Cadereyta Refinery Under Scrutiny in USMCA Review

The Commission for Environmental Cooperation (CCA), the environmental agency overseeing issues in the United States, Mexico, and Canada, announced its review of an anonymous complaint regarding emissions from the Cadereyta refinery owned by PEMEX, located on the outskirts of Monterrey.

Under USMCA, the CCA has a 30-day window to determine if Mexico should respond to the allegations, as outlined in a statement released by the agency. The complainant, a Mexican citizen, accuses Mexico of inadequately enforcing environmental laws regulating air emissions from the refinery and addressing pollution in Monterrey. Residents have long voiced concerns about the city's air quality, prompting recent promises by Nuevo Leon authorities to take action in ending PEMEX's burning activities.

The formal accusation against PEMEX's installation materialized on Jan 24, 2024, when the state government reported the Cadereyta Refinery to the Attorney General's Office for polluting emissions in the Metropolitan Zone of Monterrey. Alfonso Martínez, State Ministry of Environment, stated that the lawsuit was a last resort after unsuccessful attempts at diplomacy and reasoning. The complaint cites violations of federal Penal Code Art. 414 and 415, related to the production of hazardous substances without implementing preventive measures.

"The complaint, filed alongside a group of attorneys, is well-founded and hard to ignore. We have exhausted diplomacy and reason, which should prevail in such situations, and now we proceed to this new phase," said Martínez.

According to the Nuevo Leon government, environmental pollution has worsened over the last eight years, with approximately 75% of days in 2023 experiencing poor air quality. State authorities attribute this deterioration to the Cadereyta refinery, asserting that it is responsible for 90% of sulfur dioxide emissions in the area. 

In 2023, viral images surfaced, revealing thick, yellow-black smoke billowing from the Cadereyta refinery chimneys. These images heightened international scrutiny on PEMEX. As one of the world's most indebted oil companies, PEMEX faces mounting pressure from the United States and bond investors to address operational inefficiencies, notably significant methane leaks and excessive gas burning.