Secretaría de Medio Ambiente y Recursos Naturales (SEMARNAT)

The Secretaría de Medio Ambiente y Recursos Naturales, or SEMARNAT, is Mexico’s federal environmental ministry. It develops and coordinates national policy covering environmental protection, natural resources, biodiversity, pollution prevention, water management and climate change. Its responsibilities include establishing regulatory frameworks, coordinating environmental programs and working with decentralized and specialized bodies within Mexico’s federal environmental sector. SEMARNAT is also playing a central role in Mexico’s transition toward a circular economy. Under the General Circular Economy Law adopted in 2026, the ministry leads the National Circular Economy System and participates in developing policies related to material recovery, extended producer responsibility and waste reduction. In the Chapultepec initiative, SEMARNAT supports the application of circular economy principles to waste management and resource recovery.