Transcript The WTO negotiations on liberalization of trade in environmental

UNCTAD
Environmental goods and
services
Mandate
• “The reduction or, as appropriate,
elimination of tariff and non-tariff barriers
to environmental goods and services”,
Doha Ministerial Declaration, para 31(iii)
• Does not define environmental goods
– except in juxtaposition with environmental
services
• Does not define negotiating modalities
Institutional arrangements
• CTESS:
• NAMA:
• CTS:
• AG?
• Rules?
product coverage
modalities
environmental services
Role for CTESS
• Define environmental goods?
– foreshadow modalities?
• Identify issues relevant to environmental
goods?
• Mainstreaming vs. compartmentalizing
Lists
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OECD
APEC
National lists
WTO compilation
– «Convergence list»
• «Climate change» list
Defining goods
• Environmental goods
– dual use
• Environmentally preferable products
– relativism in time and space
• Environmental goods = industrial goods?
NAMA +, scenario I
• Market access as priority
• Extension of tariff negotiations
• Trade performance as main criterion
– assessing reciprocity
• statistical approach and its deficiencies
• Applied tariff differential (developed –
developing) is in 2-3 percent range
– going down as a result of unilateral liberalization
– environmental projects enjoy tariff waivers
NAMA +, scenario II
• Environment as priority
• Going beyond tariff negotiations
– NTBs
• Links to services negotiations
• Agricultural goods (?)
• Rules (?)
NTBs: defining the scope
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NAMA: mandate on NTBs
Notifications proved difficult
NTBs
• “Critical mass” approach?
• Practicality of negotiating objectives within the
time-frame (?) for DDA negotiations
• Reports on status of request-offer negotiations
conducted bi- or pluri-laterally from Chairs of
such negotiating groups
• Hear presentations from NAMA Members
pursuing particular initiatives in other
Committees and Negotiating Groups
Services-led negotiations?
• Environmental projects
– goods account for 5-15 percent
• ES play a role in the negotiations under
Article XIX of the GATS
Negotiating dynamics
• Phased-in commitments
– telecom, banking, insurance, distribution,
business, postal and courrier, construction
• Sectoral focus of current schedules
– 44 percent of membership
• Sectoral pattern of offers
– less than 10
Reality check
• Only 10% of the total EGS may actually
be traded
• Equipment: 35-45%
• Services: 15-20%
– over 50 percent are low tech - high volume
• Goods and services: are they
interrelated? In trade? In markets?
• Projects as main vehicle
Alternative approaches
• Bringing negotiations closer to real life
situations
• Refocusing on environment
Project approach
• Unilateral project definition (India)
– apparently designed after CDM
• Concessions limited in time, in scope
Integrated approaches
• Combination of a list and project
approach (Argentina)
• List of private and public entities eligible
for enhanced market access of relevant
goods and services (Argentina, India)
Compatibility test
• Absent any new and particular rules
– analysis of WTO law, as it stands, shows a number
of uncertainties
– MFN, like product, general exceptions,
jurisprudence
• WTO Members are free to negotiate a new
framework
– would form part of the WTO system
– on a par with other agreements and will prevail as
lex specialis over more general provisions
Environmental area approach
• Environmental areas as point of convergence
– UNCTAD expert meeting, July 2003
• Start with multilaterally agreed goals and
targets
– MDGs, MEAs, other agreements
• Proceed to technical negotiations
– goods, services, standards, investment measures,
IPRs, domestic regulation, other areas
• Result: schedules (bindings), changes in rules
(as appropriate), and protocols (measures of
support)
Main areas
• Water and waste-water management
– UNCTAD expert meeting, July 2003
• Renewable energy
– UNCTAD expert meeting, February 2005
Climate change
• Climate change under environmental area
approach?
• US
– «WTO Climate Initiative»
– negotiation of parallel EGS Agreement
• EU, US: early action on «climatefriendly» technologies
• Proposal by Brazil: biofuels
Renewables
• UNCTAD’s expert meeting, Feb. 2005
– goods, equipment, technologies, biofuels
• Limits to tariff liberalization
• Need for international deployment
strategy
– support measures
– scope for trade and trade policy
Agricultural goods
• Ethanol
• Organic agricultural products
– proposal by Brazil
Identifying issues
• List of renewable
• Standards
– energy efficiency
• building materials, electric appliances
– carbon content???
• Subsidies
– non-actionable subsidies for renewables?
– phasing out of subsidies for fossil fuels???
• Investment measures
– local content requirements
• Government procurement
Fall back option
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Request and offer
Managing risks
Tailor-made outcome
NTBs
– proposal by Brazil
Climate change, GHG
emissions reduction
Air pollution
Biofuels
Agriculture
Organics
Environmental goods
and services
Overriding considerations
• How to ensure the negotiations and their
outcome are commercially meaningful
and financially viable?
• How to make negotiations serve the
higher purpose of environmental
technology transfer?