Board of Directors announces BECC/NADB full merger for 2017

Carlos Raúl Delgado Aranda, Deputy General Director of International Financial Organizations at Mexico’s Ministry of Finance (SHCP) and Board Chair in 2017, highlighted that “the recent reform approved by the Mexican Senate in April of this year allows the BECC and NADB to merge and create a single institution.” “This is intended to better and more efficiently provide assistance to the border and improve the synergy to promote projects of great impact on the environment,” he said.

Sonora´s Secretary of State Miguel Ernesto Pompa Corella, representing Governor Claudia Pavlovich Arellano, reiterated the best disposition and the highest interest of his administration in advancing this joint participation to achieve more prosperous and sustainable border regions with enhanced binational cooperation.

In his speech, Manuel Ignacio Acosta, Mayor of Hermosillo, spoke about the projects carried out in the state capital with the assistance of the BECC and NADB, such as a wastewater treatment plant. He also mentioned the Emerging and Sustainable Cities Program that receives support from the NADB, as well as the Green Infrastructure initiative "which we designed together with the assistance of the BECC and allows us to promote sustainable development in the state capital.”  

A video of NADB and BECC performance highlights during the first half of the year presented a first combined report on the closeout results of completed projects that received assistance from both institutions, providing a comprehensive view of indicators for each Infrastructure sector. The report included a review of 60 completed projects: 48 in the water and wastewater sector, seven in solid waste management, two in air quality through street paving, two in clean energy, and one for water conservation. These projects have benefited a population of more than 5.48 million and represent an approximate investment of US $711.8 million. Overall, the results reflect environmental and health improvements, showing that the expectations set when these projects were certified, have been met.

Finally, a report was presented on the conclusions of the third environmental impact assessment conducted by NADB and BECC on the water and wastewater infrastructure project certified and implemented between 1995 and 2003 in the communities of Socorro and San Elizario, in the so-called Lower Valley of El Paso County, Texas. The assessment results show there was an increase in drinking water coverage, which rose from 48% to 100%, and that 93% of the total population previously using failing septic tanks and cesspools have connected their homes to the new wastewater collection system. There was also an improvement in health conditions, mainly reflecting a lower incidence of acute hepatitis A, skin conditions and gastrointestinal diseases.

In a press conference held prior to the public meeting, BECC General Manager Maria Elena Giner and NADB Acting Managing Director Alex Hinojosa announced the appointments of Salvador López Córdova as the first Chief Environmental Officer (CEVO) under the new merged structure, and Calixto Mateos as Acting Deputy Managing Director of the NADB. The NADB official noted that “merging the two institutions will avoid duplication of functions and improve the efficiency of processes.

The presidium of this binational event was led by Mr. Delgado Aranda of the SHCP and Geoffrey Okamoto, Deputy Assistant Secretary for International Development Policy at the U.S. Treasury Department and Board Co-Chair. 

They were joined in the presidium by board members Marcela Andrade Martínez, Head of the SHCP Office for Coordination with States and Mexico Border State Representative; Colleen Hoey, Director of the Office of Mexican Affairs, U.S. Department of State; Randy Hill of the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency; Enrique Lendo Fuentes, Director of the International Affairs Office, Ministry of the Environment and Natural Resources; Citlali Pérez Saucedo, Deputy Director General for Border Affairs, Ministry of Foreign Affairs; Carlos de la Parra, Mexico Border Resident Representative and researcher at Colegio de la Frontera Norte; Denise Moreno Ducheny, from Center for U.S.-Mexican Studies, University of California at San Diego and U.S. Border Resident Representative; and Jose Rodriguez, Texas Senator.

During the opening of the public session, on behalf of the Board of Directors of the Association of Water and Sanitation Companies (ANEAS), Salvador Sánchez presented Maria Elena Giner with an award recognizing her work in favor of water utilities throughout the northern border of Mexico.

During the public comments section, meeting attendees made the following remarks: 

1.- Representative Sandra Mercedes Hernández, Chair of the Energy, Environment and Climate Change Commission of the Sonora Congress commented on the legislative work on green infrastructure and proposed bills to address the impacts of climate change and protect the environment. “We are taking a big step in a matter of life, ensuring environmental stability for our new generations,” she said.

2.- Aurora Linares of the company Industrializados Ecológicos, presented a solution for scrap tire reclamation using environmentally-friendly calcination technology.

3.- Francisco Javier Ayala of the company Tratadora de Aguas de Delicias, presented the issue of the construction and financing of this water treatment project, which has not started for various reasons.

4.- Oscar Cortés of the Mexican Federation of Civil Engineer Associations, asked to formalize a Memorandum of Understanding to promote best practices in environmental infrastructure projects.

5.- José Alberto García, CEO of Oceanus Energía y Agua de México, presented a reverse osmosis and energy storage technology that can be used in Sonora and Baja California.

6.- Juan García, Director of Strategic Projects in Reynosa, requested that consideration be given to the potential financing of various projects, especially in the public transportation, street lighting, and wind power generation areas.

7.- Daniel Torres, Mayor of Valle Hermoso, asked that consideration be given to supporting a project to supply garbage collection equipment to the Matamoros regional landfill and a transfer station. He also asked for support for the rehabilitation of water treatment plants.

8.- Luis Pinto, Director General of the State Water Commission of Tamaulipas read a message about his state's commitments to sustainability in relation to water.

9.- Adrián Escalante, Director of Public Services in Caborca Sonora, requested support for the construction of a sanitary landfill and purchase of related equipment, in addition to a wastewater treatment plant.

10. Cecilia Olague, Secretary of Urban Development and Ecology of Chihuahua, thanked BECC and NADB for the support they have provided to different projects that positively impact the population of this state. “We are very confident that this merger of BECC and NADB will become a watershed and strengthen the work developed thus far,” she said.

11.- Ramón Márquez, Project Director for the Municipality of Nacozari, Sonora, requested the support of both institutions for the remediation of mine tailings, a wastewater treatment plant, and a water treatment plant. 

For video of the event, click here.

For video of the BECC/NADB Status Report(Spanish only) , click here.