Carter D E, Peña C, Varady R, Suk W A
Department of Pharmacology/Toxicology, College of Pharmacy, University of Arizona, Tucson 85721-0207, USA.
Environ Health Perspect. 1996 Jun;104(6):590-4. doi: 10.1289/ehp.96104590.
Environmental health and environmental quality issues along the U.S.-Mexico border have been of concern for several years. The enactment of the North American Free Trade Agreement and the presence of the maquiladoras (foreign-owned industries using imported raw materials) have intensified those concerns recently. Efforts to assess these issues are complicated by the fact that many of the issues affecting the border region are within federal jurisdiction, but the problems are regional and local in nature. Thus, state and local governments become involved with public concerns about real and potential problems. One major problem is that environmental health data from this region are lacking, particularly from Mexico. Some new agencies such as the Border Environment Cooperation Commission, the United States-Mexico Border Health Commission, and the North American Commission on Environmental Cooperation have joined several existing agencies at the federal and state level to address environmental quality and health. Several studies have been initiated to determine air and water quality, but little is being done in the areas of hazardous waste and health assessment. Several problems are anticipated in the generation of such data, such as its format and accessibility. Data gaps and research needs are discussed.
多年来，美国与墨西哥边境沿线的环境卫生和环境质量问题一直备受关注。北美自由贸易协定的颁布以及边境加工企业（使用进口原材料的外资企业）的存在，最近加剧了这些担忧。评估这些问题的努力因以下事实而变得复杂：许多影响边境地区的问题属于联邦管辖范围，但问题本身具有区域性和地方性。因此，州和地方政府参与到公众对实际和潜在问题的关注之中。一个主要问题是该地区缺乏环境卫生数据，尤其是来自墨西哥的数据。一些新机构，如边境环境合作委员会、美墨边境卫生委员会和北美环境合作委员会，已与联邦和州一级的几个现有机构联合起来，以解决环境质量和健康问题。已经开展了几项研究来确定空气和水质，但在危险废物和健康评估领域所做的工作很少。在生成此类数据时预计会出现几个问题，例如其格式和可获取性。文中还讨论了数据缺口和研究需求。
