[NHCOLL-L:761] Mexican collecting permits (longish)

[Doug Yanega]

There has been some interesting info passing around on the permit-l list
that many others would be interested in:

>Date:         Fri, 20 Oct 2000 12:02:10 -0400
>Subject:      Re: Mexico permits?
>To:           PERMIT-L at SIVM.SI.EDU
>From: "David Furth" <Furth.David at NMNH.SI.EDU>
>
>There is a new Nomina Official Mexican (NOM) that went into
>effect in July of this year.  This allows foreign scientists
>to collect under the collecting license of registered
>Mexican scientists.  You must contact a Mexican scientist
>who will be your "collaborator" and then they must register
>on the Mexican national collectors list.  They must submit
>an annual report.
>
>Possibly you can get additional information from the
>CONABIO website (www.conabio.gob.mx).
>
>Export (and Import) permitting is the same one page form
>and takes 10-14 days and about $10 to process through
>Instituto Nacional de Ecologia (Mexican US Fish & Wildlife
>Service counterpart).  I have information, instructions, and
>copies of the form if you like.

This was followed up by Ted Papenfuss, who wrote:

>I recently got a Mexican scientific permit.  The paper work
>is handled by the science officer at the US Embassy. She
>took care of everything.  You do need a Mexican collaborator
>to send a letter of support.  The cost is fairly high, about
>$900 for the permit valid for a year.  You need to list in
>advance the species, numbers requested, and states you want
>to work in. Half the collection goes to a Mexican
>institution.
>
>This is the e-mail for Angelica Narvaez at the US Embassy.
>She can e-mail you an attachment with the permit application
>and requirements.  Plan on several months for approval.

However, David Furth followed this up with:

>As I said in a message to the group a week or so ago, there
>IS A NEW "LAW" called a Nomina Official Mexicana (NOM)
>#97/98 that went into effect in July of this year.  It
>requires that foreign researcher establish an official
>"collaboration" with a Mexican scientist who must register
>to be on a Mexican National collector list and get a
>collecting license, then the foreign scientist does not need
>to go through the very long, complicated  and expensive
>process through Angelica Narvaez at the US Embassy.  I have
>spoken to Angelica several times over the past few years and
>she has been very helpful, but as I understand the new NOM
>from Jorge Soberon (Director of CONABIO), who was a major
>force in getting this new NOM passed, the process should be
>A LOT EASIER now, but you do need to work with a Mexican
>collaborator - not necessarily one who works on the exact
>same thing or group of organisims as you do.
>
>I have included (below) the Spanish wording of the new NOM
>as sent to me by Jorge Soberon.  If anyone knows of a
>English version of this new NOM #97/98, I and others would
>certainly appreciate knowing about it.  ALSO, the mechanism
>of how the Mexican scientist gets registered on this new
>national collector list and gets this new license is still
>not exactly clear to me.  There are still a few unresolved
>issues revolving around the whole process, but this new NOM
>#97 should make it a lot quicker and easier.
>
>************************************************************
>CAPITULO IV
>COLECTA CIENTIFICA Y CON PROPOSITOS DE ENSENANZA
>
>Articulo 97
>
>La colecta de ejemplares, partes y derivados de vida
>silvestre con fines de investigacion cientifica y con
>propositos de ensenanza requiere de autorizacion de la
>Secretaria y se llevara a cabo con el consentimiento previo,
>expreso e informado del propietario o poseedor legitimo del
>predio en donde esta se realice. Esta autorizacion no
>amparara el aprovechamiento para fines comerciales ni de
>utilizacion en biotecnologia, que se regira por las
>disposiciones especiales que resulten aplicables. La
>autorizacion sera otorgada solo cuando no se afecte con ella
>la viabilidad de las poblaciones, especies, habitats y
>ecosistemas. Las autorizaciones para realizar colecta
>cientifica se otorgaran, de conformidad con lo establecido
>en el reglamento, por linea de investigaciono por proyecto.
>Las autorizaciones por linea de investigacion se otorgaran
>para el desarrollo de estas actividades por parte de
>investigadores y colectores cientificos vinculados a las
>instituciones de investigacion y colecciones cientificas
>nacionales, asi como a aquellos con trayectoria en la
>aportacion de informacion para el conocimiento de la
>biodiversidad nacional, y para su equipo de trabajo. Las
>autorizaciones por proyecto se otorgaran a las personas que
>no tengan estas caracteristicas o a las
>personas que vayan a realizar colecta cientifica sobre
>especies o poblaciones en riesgo, o sobre habitat critico.
>
>Articulo 98
>
>Las personas autorizadas para realizar una colecta
>cientifica deberan, en los terminos que establezca el
>reglamento, presentar informes de actividades y destinar al
>menos un duplicado del material biologico colectado a
>instituciones o colecciones cientificas mexicanas, salvo que
>la Secretaria determine lo contrario por existir
>representaciones suficientes y en buen estado de dicho
>material en las mencionadas instituciones o colecciones.

Given the potential importance of this to many entomologists and museum
workers, I figured I'd pass this all along, and add a request:

Is there anyone here from Mexico (or working in Mexico) who knows how,
exactly, the new permitting process is being handled? Evidently David
doesn't have those details, and none of the rest of us can take advantage
of the new legislation unless we know what sort of forms need to be filed,
where to obtain them, and who we have to submit them to, etc. I and many
others would be grateful if anyone can help with this. As should be
obvious, the old process, requiring a list of species and numbers of
specimens, has been a major stumbling block for entomologists, and
basically kept many of us from even attempting to collect there for many
years now.

Sincerely,


Doug Yanega        Dept. of Entomology         Entomology Research Museum
Univ. of California - Riverside, Riverside, CA 92521
phone: (909) 787-4315 (standard disclaimer: opinions are mine, not UCR's)
           http://entmuseum9.ucr.edu/staff/yanega.html
  "There are some enterprises in which a careful disorderliness
        is the true method" - Herman Melville, Moby Dick, Chap. 82