Americas
EHS Service
North America
North America is one of the most regulated regions in terms of EHS, with very
detailed and prescriptive requirements. At the same time, the requirements have
been codified to a great extend, making it easier to find back what one has to
comply with. Also typical for North America is the tough enforcement practice,
with huge fines and high civil liability exposure.
Enhesa operates throughout North America and covers both the national
requirements as well as the state/provincial requirements.
Latin America
Latin America has dynamically changed during the last decade. Government
policies in various countries has increased institutional stability of the
Ministries or government bodies involved in environment, health and safety
issues. Two main trends have become evident in Latin American countries: first,
a movement towards deregulation and simplification of procedures concerning
permits, licences, fees, taxes and reports; and secondly, a traditional
perspective reinforcing the powers granted to the national regulatory bodies,
resulting in more specific EHS regulatory instruments.
The improvement of commercial activity in various Latin American countries
(e.g. Brazil, Chile, Venezuela) during the last ten years has exposed this
region to regulatory frameworks from other jurisdictions (e.g. USA, EU, Germany,
France, Italy, Spain, etc.). In many cases, important foreign rules and
standards have been willingly adopted or emulated, thus increasing the common
understanding of EHS issues between Latin America and other regions of the
world. In addition, economic integration processes and trade agreements such as
MERCOSUR and the Andean Pact have had a large influence in EHS regulatory
developments in countries like Argentina, Uruguay, Paraguay, Ecuador and
Colombia.
Caribbean Region
The diversity of EHS regulatory frameworks and policies within the Caribbean
Region has been determined by the legal background regulating their national and
international affairs. The mosaic of countries in this region includes countries
with a common law framework (e.g. Barbados, Bermuda, Jamaica) and countries
following the civil law tradition (e.g. Dominican Republic). In addition,
various countries have established a politically close relationship with the USA
(e.g. Puerto Rico is an independent associate state, the US Virgin Islands
follows both national and US rules concerning environmental issues), a fact that
is reflected in the EHS regulatory frameworks found in these specific countries.
Due to their geographical location, Caribbean countries rely heavily on their
natural resources and internal human capital. However, unemployment remains a
paramount issue within all the countries in this region. During the last decade
numerous countries in the Caribbean Region have been launched into the
international arena through a series of bilateral or multilateral commercial
agreements. This has resulted in an increased attention being paid to
sustainable development and labour protection requirements as the countries in
question seek to fulfil the expectations and standards of their commercial
counterparts (e.g. Caribbean Community - CARICOM).