Cellulose plant conflict between Argentina and Uruguay

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The cellulose plant conflict between Argentina and Uruguay is an ongoing conflict between private people, organizations and the governments of these two South American countries rooted at the construction of cellulose processing plants on the Uruguay River. It is a diplomatic, economic and public relations conflict, which has affected tourism and transportation, as well as the otherwise amicable relations between the two countries.

Contents 1 Origin of the conflict 2 The first protests 3 Legal and diplomatic escalation 4 February 2006 5 March 2006 5.1 Gualeguaychú lifts the blockade 5.2 Suspension of works 6 April 2006 7 May - July 2006 7.1 The case at the ICJ 8 August - September 2006 8.1 Uruguay's demands before the Mercosur Tribunal 8.2 ENCE cancels Fray Bentos project 9 October 2006 9.1 Argentinian newspaper publishes misleading photograph 9.2 World Bank study says Uruguay mills meet all environmental standards 9.3 Gualeguaychú Assembly's strategy 10 November 2006 10.1 Wall blockade 10.2 King Juan Carlos agrees to intercede 10.3 IFC and MIGA approve loan 11 Sources 12 See also 13 External links

[edit] Origin of the conflict

After twenty years of forest industry development, in October 2003, the Spanish company ENCE ^[1], received permission from the Uruguayan government to build a cellulose pulp mill in Fray Bentos, on the Uruguay River (which forms the natural border in the north between Brazil and Argentina and in the south between Uruguay and Argentina).

Argentinians residing mainly in Gualeguaychú, Entre Ríos, about 35 kilometers from Fray Bentos, had been claiming that ENCE's paper plant would pollute the river. Also some demonstrations had been organized against ENCE.

After ENCE received its permit, another company, the Finnish Botnia, ^[2] published its intention to study a possibility to construct a mill in the same area. Botnia received the environmental authorization to build a mill in February 2005.

The Uruguay River is shared by the two countries and is protected by a Treaty, which requires that anything that affects it must be previously informed between Argentina and Uruguay. Besides the issue of pollution, Argentina claimed that the Uruguayan government had not asked for permission to build the plants. Uruguayan authorities would later counter that conversations had indeed been held, without raising objections, and that the technology used in the plants would avoid polluting the river.

[edit] The first protests

On 30 April 2005, just two months after President Vazquez and his government took power in Uruguay, a large group of 10,000-20,000 people (residents of Gualeguaychú and nearby, as well as environmental groups from Argentina) ilegally blocked the international Libertador General San Martín Bridge (between Gualeguaychú and Fray Bentos) protesting the installation of the cellulose factories.

The protest gained importance and diplomatic weight, when the governor of Entre Ríos, Jorge Busti, stated his support for it, and in July the Argentine chancellor Rafael Bielsa went personally to Gualeguaychú to meet the residents.

A draft cumulative impact study of the two mills by the International Finance Corporation (IFC) of the World Bank was released on 19 December. According to it, the technical requirements of the plants had been fulfilled and the quality of the water and the air in the region should not be harmed. The IFC said it would wait for further consultations to be made before finalizing the study and thus before financing the projects.

On 23 December, about 50 Gualeguaychú residents again blocked Route 136 and the General San Martín Bridge, using rubble, logs and vehicles. The block, slated for 8 a.m., started at 5 a.m., angering many drivers who were forced to take a detour to the next bridge, which goes from Colón to Paysandú. Later also this bridge was blocked. Many Argentinians habitually travel to Uruguay in the summer, beginning immediately before Christmas.

[edit] Legal and diplomatic escalation

On 26 December, the Uruguayan chancellor Reinaldo Gargano accused Argentina of violating Mercosur regulations on freedom of circulation of goods, and spoke to Argentine chancellor Jorge Taiana, requesting that measures be taken to avoid harming the tourist season. A few hours later, Argentina ratified the protest, asked to suspend the factories' construction, and threatened to make the matter a legal conflict.

The Citizens' Environmental Assembly of Gualeguaychú simultaneously blocked the three bridges that link the province of Entre Ríos with Uruguay on 30 December 2005. The following days saw intermitent blockades and protests, with volunteers handing pamphlets and explaining the passers-by the reasons for their rejection of the paper factories.

Argentine Head of Environmental Affairs, Raúl Estrada Oyuela, went on record proposing to boycott the production of the polluting plants. On 2 January 2006 the Uruguayan government rejected this forcefully. ^[3] The municipal intendant of Río Negro Department, Omar Lafluf, said that most Uruguayans supported the factories; a survey released on 5 January showed that only 16% were against them. ^[4]

At this point, Greenpeace activists met with Uruguayan officials to request the suspension of the works. Despite this, the Uruguayan government prepared a pamphlet to be handed out to Argentine tourists, informing them of the technical aspects of environmental safety of the factories. The road blocks soon became scheduled events. Later Greenpeace refuses to take any further action, claiming that as long as Botnia doesn't pollute the river and follows the same conditions requested to build a plant of this sort in Europe, there is no problem with the cellulose plant at all. [1]

Chile became indirectly involved, as several Chilean trucks carrying equipment and materials for Botnia project across Argentina were detained by the blocks before they could cross the border to Uruguay near the end of their journey.

Upon a request by governor Busti, on 25 January 2006 the Argentine national government announced it would take the issue to the International Court of Justice in The Hague, accusing Uruguay of violating the bilateral Treaty of Uruguay River dealing with the conservation of the Uruguay River. Uruguay's chancellor Gargano called this "a grave step" which bypasses and ignores the institutions of the Mercosur, and said Uruguay will protest the lack of action of the Argentine government with regards to the road blocks at the Controversy Resolution Tribunal of Asunción.

On 30 January the High Level Technical Group (Grupo Técnico de Alto Nivel, GTAN), a joint Argentine-Uruguayan commission for the study of the impact of the paper factories, ended deliberations with the two countries issuing separate statements. The Argentine Foreign Ministry accuses the Uruguayan members of GTAN of withholding information, while the Uruguayan officials deny it. The GTAN had been gathered 180 days before, as mandated by the Uruguay River Statute. ^[5]

The government of Entre Ríos, in the meantime, distributed 100,000 pamphlets about the paper factories and their alleged impact among the public of the Cosquín music festival in Córdoba, which ended on 29 January.

[edit] February 2006

On 6 February 2006 Uruguayan President Tabaré Vázquez acknowledged that he had spoken on the phone to Argentine President Néstor Kirchner the previous week, in order to look for a solution of the conflict. Regardless, he also announced that on any event the construction of the plants would not be halted by the Uruguayan government.

On 3 February 2006 members of the Gualeguaychú Environmental Assembly had started a long-term blockade of Route 136 that leads to the Libertador General San Martín Bridge and to Fray Bentos. Several votings were since conducted on the issue, in every case resolving to maintain the blockade.

At the beginning of the blockade, Jorge Eduardo Lozano, designated bishop of Gualeguaychú, stated that he supported the protestors because theirs was "a just cause", though he also spoke of the need to look for "reasonable alternatives". The archbishop of Montevideo, Nicolás Cotugno, offered to mediate.

In the meantime, the citizens of Gualeguaychú, after an assembly, rejected the mediation of Peace Nobel Prize Adolfo Pérez Esquivel. Pérez Esquivel had asked them to end the blockades while talks were conducted.

On 12 February about 400 people, gathered by the Colón Environmental Assembly, went in nearly 100 vehicles from Colón (100 km north of Gualeguaychú) to the international General Artigas Bridge, demonstrating there and creating a traffic disruption. This temporal measure was followed, on 16 February, by a blockade of Route 135 and the bridge, which links Colón with Paysandú in Uruguay. ^[6]

All these earlier actions were targeted to impact the public hearings of Cumulative Impact Study, held by IFC on 14 and 16 in both Montevideo and Buenos Aires.

On 20 February the Uruguayan government decided to accuse Argentina before the Organization of American States, for its lack of action on the matter of the blocks. The same day, the Supreme Court of Argentina rejected the case presented by Argentinians against Uruguay, returning it to Guillermo Quadrini, federal judge of Concepción del Uruguay.

The School of Chemistry of the University of the Republic, Uruguay, released an open letter to Uruguayan society on February 22. ^[7] They reported that TCF-derived paper can be recycled less times than ECF-derived paper. TCF process is 5% more expensive and needs 10% more fuel and wood to obtain the same quantity of paper than ECF process; therefore, it releases 10% more greenhouse effect gases. The letter stated that ECF and TCF are accepted as "best available technologies" in developed countries, and toxic emissions are minimal (specially dioxins), which implies that emissions depend on management and controls, not on whether TCF or ECF processes are used.

[edit] March 2006

During their respective state visits to Chile on 11 March, on the occasion of the inauguration of President Michelle Bachelet, Presidents Néstor Kirchner and Tabaré Vázquez met and discussed the situation personally. They jointly asked the participants for the suspension of both the construction of the cellulose plants and the road blocks, in order to discuss the matter. Two new meetings were scheduled, to take place in Anchorena, Uruguay, and Mar del Plata, Argentina. ^[8] In the following days, President Vázquez received harsh criticism from the political opposition, and backtracked publicly stating that Uruguay "will not negotiate under pressure". ^[9] The Gualeguaychú Environmental Assembly met with Governor Busti to hear the proposal, but then decided to keep the blockade for the moment and reconsider.

16th of March, a demonstration of about 10,000 participants was held in Fray Bentos, Uruguay for the pulp mills. The participants defended their rights and the sovereignty of Uruguay.

[edit] Gualeguaychú lifts the blockade

The Assembly gathered again, with an unusually large attendance, on 20 March. After discussing several proposals, they voted to lift the blockades on Route 136 and the Libertador General San Martín Bridge (which had lasted 45 days), starting the following day, and wait 7 days for the Uruguayan government to reciprocate (suspending the construction of the plants in order to discuss). Uruguayan Chancellor Gargano had previously stated that freeing the roads was a sine qua non condition to start negotiations. ^[10] The Environmental Assembly of Colón, on the other hand, decided to continue blocking Route 135 and the international pass over the General Artigas Bridge, 80 km north of Gualeguaychú. ^[11]

[edit] Suspension of works

On 26 March one of the companies building the cellulose plants, Botnia, announced that it would suspend the installation works for 90 days "in order to contribute to the opening of dialogue and answering to the request of Presidents Tabaré Vázquez y Néstor Kirchner." Botnia is so far the largest private investment in the history of Uruguay, and it had completed 45% of the project, but not started the plants themselves. The news caused concern among European stockholders. ^[12] ENCE, whose construction had not yet started at all, also informally agreed to suspend the works.

Soon afterwards, the ombudsman of the World Bank, Meg Taylor, concluded that the review carried out by the IFC about the cellulose plants had been "incomplete" and its procedures not rigorous enough. These conclusions were delivered to the government of Entre Ríos, which in turn passed them on to President Kirchner to be analyzed in the upcoming presidential meeting in Colonia, Uruguay. ^[13]

On 30 March, Botnia sent the construction workers union (SUNCA) a communique which stated that the suspension had been revised and work should continue normally. The company would halt the works for only ten days. When this was confirmed, the Colonia meeting, which had been postponed once already, was cancelled. On 5 April, after deliberations, the Gualeguaychú Assembly resumed the blockade of Route 136. ^{[14] [15]}

[edit] April 2006

The relationship between the political actors of both countries became tense after the resumption of the blockade. Catholic Church leaders in both vowed to facilitate the dialogue (though specifically not to act as mediators). ^[16] The governments of Finland and Spain denied the possibility of intervening in the affairs involving Botnia and ENCE. The Finnish Minister of Foreign Trade and Cooperation for Development, Paula Lehtomäki, cancelled a visit to Argentina citing a concern that she might not be welcome, and stated that the conflict was to be solved among Argentina, Uruguay and the two private companies. ^[17]

Uruguay threatened to resort to the World Trade Organization, since the blockades "violate basic principles of international commerce" and were not cleared by the Argentine authorities, thus causing an economic loss to Uruguay (which they estimated at $400 million). The Uruguayan government also considered a demand on the International Court of Justice, claiming that the blockades have violated human rights by preventing the free circulation of persons and goods. ^[18]

During an official visit to Mexico, Uruguayan president Tabaré Vázquez said that "while leaders are talking about an integration process, one of these countries" (Argentina) "is discriminating against another one with a blockade." He added that that was "a policy of disintegration", and proposed, once more, to discuss the issue using Mercosur's established institutions. ^[19]

[edit] May - July 2006

On 3 May Argentina formally presented its complaint before the International Court of Justice, accusing Uruguay of violating of the Uruguay River Statute by authorizing the construction of the plants without prior consultation with Argentina. ^[20]

On 11 May, at the opening of the European Union, Latin America and Caribbean Business Summit in Vienna, President Kirchner gave a speech reiterating the accusations against Uruguay, and also accused the developed countries of applying a double standard with respect to pollution controls. The presidents' official photo shooting was briefly interrupted by the presence of the Queen of the Carnival of Gualeguaychú, 26-year-old Evangelina Carrozzo, who had entered the event along with a Greenpeace activist, both with press passes obtained by a weekly newspaper of Morón, Buenos Aires whose director has collaborated with environmentalists before. As the shooting was about to begin, Carrozzo swiftly took off her overcoat (leaving her wearing only a tasselled bikini), produced a paper banner that read "No pulpmill pollution" in Spanish and English, and paraded with it before the 58 heads of state, before being taken away by security. ^[21][22]

On 17 May, 150 members of the Gualeguaychú Environmental Assembly travelled to Buenos Aires and, together with Carrozzo and some 200 local activists, they demonstrated in front of the embassies of Finland and Sweden. ^[23] Jukka Uosukainen, head of the International Relations of the Finnish Environment Ministry, acknowledged concerns that the conflict is harming the country's reputation on environmental issues, and said that Argentine officials were invited to visit cellulose plants in Finland but they refused. ^[24]

On 27 June, environmental activist Romina Picolotti was appointed to preside the Argentine Secretariat of Environment and Sustainable Development. Picolotti, a lawyer who founded and presided the Center for Human Rights and Environment (CEDHA), used to counsel not only the Gualeguaychú Assembly, but also Entre Ríos governor Busti. The CEDHA, now presided by Picolotti's husband Daniel Taillant, provided legal advice to the Argentine case at the ICJ, and later organized a tour of several countries to raise international awareness of the cellulose plants and present arguments against their construction. ^{[25] [26]}

[edit] The case at the ICJ

Argentina sued Uruguay in the International Court of Justice, arguing that it had breached a treaty obligation to consult before doing anything that might affect the river. But in July the court rejected its request for an injunction to stop construction of the plants. Uruguay took its case to Mercosur, arguing that Argentina had failed to take action to ensure the free circulation of goods and services. During their defense at the ICJ, the Uruguayan authorities pointed to the fact that the plants were to use a technology known as Elemental Chlorine-Free (or ECF) bleaching (employing chlorine dioxide), which has been adopted by both the United States and the European Union as the "best available technology" in their wood pulp processing environmental regulations, and that an independent World Bank study has supported their position. As to the alleged violation of the Treaty of the Uruguay River, Uruguay's legal defense team asserted that discussions over the building of the plants were conducted, and that Argentine officials offered no objections ^[27].

After two months of calm while the International Court of Justice in The Hague studied the Argentine accusation, the conflict was re-ignited on July 13, when the ICJ ruled that Argentina had not convinced the court that Uruguay's actions at present were enough to grant a provisional measure halting the construction of the two cellulose plants. This judgment did not settle the question of whether Uruguay is ultimately breaching its Treaty obligations to Argentina, but ruled that no imminent danger of irreparable damage exists at the moment, and that Uruguay may still be liable to Argentina if it is later found in the final judgment that Uruguay is indeed in breach of Treaty obligations. Judges at the ICJ voted 14–1 in Uruguay's favour (the only vote against Uruguay was cast by the judge appointed by Argentina). ^[28] The next day, the Gualeguaychú Assembly organized a protest demonstration, with cars, bicycles and people on foot marching along National Route 14 and finally gathering in the city. According to Assembly leaders, new road blockades will be avoided, at least until the summer. A similar but smaller protest march took place in Colón. ^[29]

[edit] August - September 2006

On 6 August 2006, taking advantage of the high circulation of vehicles due to the winter vacations, residents of Concepción del Uruguay, Gualeguaychú, Colón and other towns, along with some Uruguayan families, handed out flyers to drivers along National Route 14, to raise awareness about the risks of pollution and inform them about their demands. Traffic was slowed down, but not blocked. ^[30]

[edit] Uruguay's demands before the Mercosur Tribunal

Starting in June, Uruguay demanded before the Mercosur Tribunal that Argentina be punished for the blockades, and that it be forced to pay reparations, following the Treaty of Asunción, which guarantees the free circulation of goods and services between Mercosur members. On 9 August, Uruguayan representatives presented their claims, centered in two points: first, that the blockades during the summer had caused grave economic damage to Uruguay (calculated in $400 million losses); and second, that the Argentine government did not act to prevent or lift the blockades. ^[31]

Argentine witnesses testified, instead, that the Kirchner administration did have an active stance and tried to soften the effects of the blockades, and showed that there had been a 33% increase in the bilateral trade between the period January–May 2005 and the same period of 2006 despite the blocks.

Uruguay also demanded that the Argentine government be forced to act in case of future blockades. The Argentine Foreign Relations Ministry was reportedly confident that the tribunal would not heed such demands, since hypothetical future violations are not subject to it, according to jurisprudence, and moreover, that the tribunal's dictates would remain symbolical, given that the blockades were discontinued, even before Uruguay's demands were presented.

The tribunal, an ad hoc assembly formed by three arbiters (one Argentine, one Uruguayan and one Spanish) gathered in Asunción, heard the allegations and, on 7 September, ruled that Argentina had acted "on good faith", and rejected the request for monetary sanctions, but it noted the blockades had caused "undeniable inconveniences to both Uruguayan and Argentine trade, in addition the violation of the free circulation right." Both governments acknowledged the tribunal's report as positive to their respective causes. ^{[32] [33]}

[edit] ENCE cancels Fray Bentos project

On 20 September 2006, the management of ENCE's plant dismissed 40 of its employees. The implicit cancellation of the project was confirmed the next day, when the company's president Juan Luis Arregui announced that the construction of the Fray Bentos plant (some earthworks only started) would not be continued, though there are plans to relocate the project to another region in Uruguay. Arregui also said that they "might have made a mistake" and explained why, in his view, "there cannot be two [cellulose] plants in Fray Bentos." ^{[34] [35]} According to Arregui, Fray Bentos lacks sufficient infrastructure to support the lorries needed. But ENCE has known for years that its factory would be just 6 km (4 miles) from the one being built by Botnia and, as of May 2006, it was still vowing that it would never move from the riverside site. Arregui was known to have met with Argentine officials in June. In a critical report, The Economist proposes that Arregui might actually have come under pressure from the Argentine government, known for its interventionism in economy, maybe as a show of strength by President Néstor Kirchner faced with the upcoming 2007 elections. ^[36]

Botnia's project is much more advanced than ENCE's, and employs 4,500 workers. After a strike started on 12 September, demanding that no more workers be brought from abroad and equal pay for local and foreign workers already in the project, the management decided to pause the construction "due to a lack of guarantees and until the conditions required for the development of this project are re-established." The construction works restarted 7 October with an unanimous decision by the construction workers.

On 24 September, thousands of Gualeguaychú residents marched with cars, motorcycles and bicycles along Route 136, effectively blocking traffic for more than 3 hours, celebrating ENCE's withdrawal and demanding that Botnia follows suit. ^[37] At the same time, following rumours that ENCE would move the location of the plants to Paysandú, also on the Uruguay River, some 4,000 residents of Colón, opposite Paysandú, gathered before the international bridge to protest that possibility. The mayors of both cities met the following day to discuss the issue. ^[38]

[edit] October 2006

[edit] Argentinian newspaper publishes misleading photograph

On 15 October La Nación published a beach photo presenting the visual impact of the pulp mill on Ñandubaysal beach. However, the photo had been taken by using 300 mm teleobjective: the mill hardly visible in the horizon in the 12 kilometer distance is presented to be located in the island close to the Argentinian coast [2].

[edit] World Bank study says Uruguay mills meet all environmental standards

On 12 October the World Bank Group's International Finance Corporation (IFC) and Multilateral Investment Guarantee Agency (MIGA) released the final cumulative impact study for the two proposed pulp mill projects. Both institutions were confident that the findings demonstrated that the mills will comply with IFC and MIGA's environmental and social policies, while generating significant economic benefits for the Uruguayan economy. Also so called Hatfield Consultants, which had in March presented questioned the draft CIS, reviewed the final CIS, and confirmed the results of the final CIS. ^[39] The more than two hundred pages study performed by EcoMetrix Incorporated concluded that the plans construction and operation posed no risk to air and water quality. ^[40]

In reaction to the study, the Gualeguaychú Assembly decided to block the international road again during the following long weekend (Columbus Day Weekend). The leaflets distributed for travellers described dire consequences for the life in Gualeguaychú (dioxin pollution, acid rain, increased incidence of cancer) when the mills start operations (the same accusations available in CEDHA homepages). Meanwhile, activists in Buenos Aires started a campaign calling Argentinians to stay in Argentina for the summer vacations instead of going to Uruguay. ^[41] The Argentine government and the provincial Entre Ríos government released a joint statement showing disagreement with the blockade, and laying the blame on the Assembly "for any harm that [the blockade] may cause to Argentine interests", but did not take any specific measures to prevent the blockade. The Assembly of Colón blocked International Road 135 as well, though only intermitently. ^{[42] [43][44]} During the weeked, Romina Picolotti, the Argentine Environment Secretary, sent a letter to IFC authorities claiming that the EcoMetrix study did not provide any new data, but employed those found in the environmental impact studies conducted for Botnia and ENCE, and that the section of the study devoted to the hydrological model was handled by an engineer who had previously been hired for Botnia's own study. Picolotti also claimed there were "substantial errors" in the study, such as exaggerating the flow of the Uruguay River and stating that it is 20 km wide, whereas no part of it is over 12 km wide. ^{[45] [46]}

On 17 October, the IFC and MIGA announced that they will ask their Boards of Directors to approve IFC financing and MIGA guarantee support for Oy Metsa Botnia’s Orion pulp mill project in Uruguay. According to the IFC press release, "the decision to proceed was based on an extensive due diligence process, which included the conclusive and positive findings of a cumulative impact study and a subsequent review of the study undertaken by independent experts (the Hatfield report)". ^[47]

[edit] Gualeguaychú Assembly's strategy

On 20 October the Gualeguaychú Assembly started discussing the possibility of new road blockades and a blockade of the Uruguay River to prevent supplies from reaching Botnia's plant. Assembly member Martín Alazar told Uruguayan newspaper El Observador that "River blockade is likely to happen, we have studied several alternatives and places". Furthermore, the activists are working on challenging the technical reports issued by the International Financial Corporation earlier this week. ^[48] Other members of the Assembly claimed that "road blockades are, today, the best argument" to stop the construction of the plants, and that they are being forced "to take violent action" faced with the lack of action from the governments. ^[49]

[edit] November 2006

[edit] Wall blockade

On 3 November (Friday), the Gualeguaychú Assembly decided to stage a new blockade for the duration of the weekend, this time erecting a concrete block wall. The 1.8-meter-high wall blocked International Route 136 almost completely, and displayed a sign in English and Finnish against the pulp mills. On the afternoon of 5 November, the Assembly dismantled the wall and lifted the blockade as planned. ^{[50] [51]}

[edit] King Juan Carlos agrees to intercede

During the XVI Ibero-American Summit in Montevideo, presidents Kirchner and Vázquez avoided a meeting between them. However, Kirchner asked King Juan Carlos of Spain to facilitate the renewal of negotiations between the two countries. The proposition was accepted by the Uruguayan government. Trinidad Jiménez, Spanish Secretary of State for Ibero-America, explained that the monarch would not be a mediator, yet he would facilitate the easing of tensions within this conflict. The Uruguayan government, in turn, stated again it would not agree on meetings at the presidential level if a road blockade is in place, as it was at the time. ^[52] José Pouler, a member of the Gualeguaychú Assembly, expressed support for the facilitation, calling it "a good initiative", though he pointed out that, to them, the construction of the plants on the river "is not negotiable". ^[53]

[edit] IFC and MIGA approve loan

On November 21, 2006 the boards of directors of the International Finance Corporation and the Multilateral Investment Guarantee Agency approved a $170 million investment by IFC and a guarantee of up to $350 million from MIGA for the proposed project. The press release from the IFC states that "the two organizations, after completing a thorough review of the facts, are convinced that the mill will generate significant economic benefits for Uruguay and cause no environmental harm." ^[54]

The Argentinean president, Nestor Kirchner reacted to the news by attacking what he considers the stubbornness of his Uruguayan counterpart and expressing that the approval was a victory for the international interests that want the region to be a global waste dump. He also reinstated that his government will not use force to stop blockades by Gualeguaychu's residents.^[55]

[edit] Sources

[edit] See also

• Foreign relations of Argentina
• Foreign relations of Uruguay

[edit] External links

• (Spanish) Citizens' Environmental Assembly of Gualeguaychú
• (Spanish) Greenpeace Uruguay
• (Spanish) National Environment Office (Uruguay)
• (English) IFC Ombudsman Preliminary Report, Nov 2005
• (English) International Finance Corporation - Cumulative Impact Study
• (English) Center for Human Rights and Environment - Paper Pulp Mills - Uruguay (links and resources).