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EPA and SEMARNAT Initiate $13.9 million Development for Rio Bravo/Rio Grande

Release Date: 05/10/2011
Contact Information: Dave Bary or Joe Hubbard at 214-665-2200 or r6press@epa.gov

EPA and SEMARNAT Initiate $13.9 million Development for Rio Bravo/Rio Grande

(DALLAS – May 10, 2011) The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) and Mexico’s Secretariat of the Environment and Natural Resources (SEMARNAT) will announce and commence the U.S.-Mexico Border 2012 (Border 2012) partners and stakeholders meeting to discuss environmental issues and plan for the development of a Regional Framework for Sustainable Use of the Rio Bravo/Rio Grande. The two countries will announce $13.9 million, including $4 million from the Global Environmental Facility and $800,000 from Mexico to fund 15 projects.

The National Coordinators meeting is convened by the Border 2012 program, a ten-year binational plan to protect public health and the environment along the border. This 1,800-mile region is home to almost 12 million residents. The binational program emphasizes the partnership between the U.S. and Mexico. Specifically, the program will fund nine projects on the U.S. border and six on the Mexico border with aims to clean the air, provide safe drinking water, reduce the risk of exposure to hazardous waste and ensure emergency preparedness.

WHAT: Press Availability

WHO: Michelle DePass, National Coordinator, EPA
Al Armendariz, Regional Administrator, EPA
Enrique Lendo, National Coordinator, SEMARNAT
Ing. Mario Lopez Perez, CONAGUA, Mexico
Dr. Javier Aparicio Mijares, Cordinador de Hidrologia, IMTA
Carlos Patino Gomez, Subcoordinador de Gestion Integrada del Agua, IMTA
Dr. Bill Covington, Associate Vice-President for Research, Texas State University
Andrew Sansom, Executive Director, Rivers Systems Institute, Texas State University
Dr. Walter Rast, River System Institute, Texas State University

WHEN: Wednesday, May 11, 2011
9:30 a.m.

WHERE: Regency West
Hyatt Regency San Antonio
123 Losoya
San Antonio, Texas 78205