Questions on the consistency with WTO provisions have been frequently raised as sustainability criteria and implementation measures were defined and adopted under the RED and FQD. However, no thorough analysis has been carried out on this topic. The objective of the worksho is to engage in an informed and constructive discussion on the technical and legal arguments surrounding the compatibility of the EU sustainability requirements with international trade rules. Special attention will be given to recent WTO jurisprudence.

Speakers include Andrew Shoyer, chair of Sidley Austin’s international trade and dispute resolution practice; Dr. Alan Swinbank, Emeritus Professor of Agricultural Economics at Reading University; Malena Sell, Senior Programme Officer, Environment and Natural Resources, ICTSD; and high-level representatives from the European Commission and the European Parliament.

The reduction or removal of trade restrictions affecting transport-related EGs supports the deployment of climate-related technologies and allows for easier and less costly access to equipment needed to make transport more sustainable. A review of a range of technology options for reducing energy use and emissions in transport reveals that negotiations on EGs may, in theory, be relevant for the implementation of only some of these technology options: certain alternative fuel vehicles (AFVs), certain components used in AFVs (such as batteries used in electric cars) and alternative fuels (such as biofuels). With regard to non-technology options, some WTO members have proposed that specific types of equipment used in public transport and bicycles could be included in the negotiations (with a view to facilitating shifts to more sustainable modes of travel).

In order to properly understand the possible contribution that the environmental goods and services (EGS) negotiations in the WTO could make to sustainable transport strategies, this presentation addresses a number of questions: What trade issues are involved in the deployment of climate-related transport technologies? What EGs can be identified in the transport sector? Do tariffs and NTBs affect international trade in these products? Will trade liberalisation alone support the deployment of climate-friendly technologies and products to developing countries? What are the key issues to be considered by governments in assessing the pros and cons of liberalising trade in specific EGs? Also discussed in this presentation are issues related to tariff classifications.

Biofuel production, markets and trade are growing globally. While this provides opportunities for sustainable development and developing country exports, challenges abound, both with regards to unintended side effects of biofuel production, and market development and forecasting in this highly regulated and contested area.
The EU is a major player in the area of biofuels. The EU Renewable Energy Directive (RED), under which member states are required to derive ten percent of their transport fuels from renewable sources by 2020, came into effect at the end of 2010. In order for such biofuels to fulfill the target, they must fulfill certain sustainability criteria. Notably, they must be at least 35 percent more carbon efficient than fossil fuels, and cannot be derived from cleared forest or wetlands.
Some countries consider these criteria to run counter to WTO law, and have said they may consider challenging them within the dispute settlement system. Others argue that they are fully legitimate, as they apply to domestic and imported biofuels alike.
The purpose of the current event is to provide an overview and discussion with regard to the current status of biofuels trade and sustainability criteria in the EU, including ongoing efforts to deal with the issue of indirect land-use change, which is not included in the current criteria.
The views of both importers and exports of biofuels will be heard, leading to what we hope will be a stimulating discussion.

In the spirit of the International Year of Biodiversity and with a view towards the 2012 United Nations Conference on Sustainable Development (Rio+20), the International Centre for Trade and Sustainable Development (ICTSD) and the United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP) held “Geneva Trade and Biodiversity Day” to explore the increasingly important intersection between trade and biodiversity policy in the promotion of sustainable development.

From WTO negotiations on fisheries subsidies to sustainability certification schemes for biofuels, trade policies have strong implications for the conservation and sustainable use of biodiversity around the globe. Similarly, ongoing talks on an international regime on access and benefit-sharing under the Convention on Biological Diversity could impact existing multilateral trade rules. Despite the clear links between these two policy-making processes, there has been relatively little international discourse or analysis that has considered how these policy communities can enhance their cooperation.

It is against this backdrop that the Geneva Trade and Biodiversity Day sought to identify and explore key issues at the trade and biodiversity nexus and provide inputs to the perceived lack of synergies between the two policy communities. In this way, participants helped to ensure that trade and biodiversity rules are mutually supportive and work together for sustainable development.

Specifically, the event aimed to:

• Improve understanding among the trade and biodiversity communities of how the pursuit of their respective goals and objectives might complement or hinder each other;
• Provide information, analysis and knowledge on the impact of multilateral trade rules on biodiversity and how biodiversity policies impact on trade and poverty reduction;
• Promote policy coherence in multi-governmental fora, including the WTO, the CBD, and WIPO, especially with regards to negotiations on an international access and benefit-sharing regime;
• Explore the synergies between trade policy and biodiversity as it relates to sectoral themes, including agriculture, intellectual property, fisheries and climate change; and
• Facilitate synergies between trade and biodiversity policy-making that results in tools that are complementary to the objectives of both communities.

This important gathering was held on 22 April 2010 at the World Meteorological Organization (WMO) headquarters, Conference Room “A”. The individual sessions brought together Geneva negotiators, international organisations, civil society and academia in an effort to foster interaction among policy makers involved in different fora, as well as with those influencing policy-making processes. See “Documentation” above for select presentations from the event.

Many governments support biofuels investment as a way to reduce carbon emissions and to create opportunities for developing countries through innovation, income generation and better quality of life for rural farmers.  The actual environmental and social impacts depend on choices about feedstocks and production technologies.  Increased production and use of biofuels poses a potential for conflict with other uses of agriculture products as well as land, spurring a debate as to whether biofuels negatively impact rural development and food security.

The challenge of future development regarding biofuels and international trade will depend on policies that balance the needs of food and energy crop producers, investors and consumers while ensuring environmentally sustainable processes and outputs. This balance is currently relevant at the regional level where investment and trade are dynamically driven by climate change and energy security concerns.

The objectives of the Regional Dialogue are:

1. To promote state-of-the-art analysis and information on the context in the Asia region vis-à-vis biofuels and trade.

2. To identify sustainable development supportive processes, policies and measures particular to regional integration in Asia, including a possible network on biofuels.

3. To identify appropriate regional and international trade policy measures surrounding biofuels in support of food and energy security, rural development and protection of the environment.

4. To analyze extra-Asian market drivers (such as targets, mandates, standards and subsidies) and regulatory frameworks and ensure their alignment with sustainability objectives in the region.

Pour le résumé pour les décideurs, cliquez ici s.v.p.

This report, led by the UN Foundation, in partnership with the International Centre for Trade and Sustainable Development and the Energy and Security Group, identifies opportunities, assesses constraints, identifies trade-offs, and outlines key policy issues for promoting sustainable production and use of bioenergy in the eight member countries of West African Economic and Monetary Union (UEMOA). It also provides appropriate data to guide governments and international organizations as they consider smallholder production schemes to broaden the use of bioenergy as part of a comprehensive agriculture sector strategy, while reducing poverty and arresting environmental degradation.

This report places biofuels certification in an international trade context.
It assesses certification through the World Trade Organization (WTO) lens and develops the requirements for trade compliance.

This paper identifies a number of issues for policymakers to consider, including the following:

- compliance with a variety of standards and incentives related to their encouragement of the switch to biofuels from fossil fuels

- the General Agreement on Tariffs and Trade (GATT) and other WTO agreements

- the issues, steps and unsettled areas that must be faced by when planning a biofuels-certification programme

Biofuel in the United States of America (USA) is primarily ethanol produced from corn. Although new legislation in the form of a recent Farm Bill and an ambitious biofuels mandate looks toward increased production of other forms of bioenergy, such as cellulosic biofuels, there is little commercial production at this time.

Without significant policy shifts, production of cellulosic biofuels on a commercial scale is unlikely to occur as rapidly as envisioned by the Renewable Fuels mandate in the face of current incentives to produce ethanol from corn. Without such shifts, increasing corn ethanol production will continue to contribute to increased stress on land and water resources, loss of wildlife habitat and conservation-dedicated land, and increased levels of hypoxia in water bodies from nitrate run-off. It will also continue to contribute to increased food and animal feed prices, low carry-over stocks and food price volatility …

This paper reviews biofuel measures that are commonly used in major producing countries against WTO subsidies disciplines. These measures are found in a range of laws and policies relating to energy, the environment and agriculture. There is little evidence that domestic policymakers have taken into account WTO disciplines when crafting these measures. This paper identifies a number of issues for policymakers to consider, including the following:

- WTO subsidy disciplines do not prohibit all subsidies or support to biofuels. Rather, the WTO rules concern themselves with subsidies that have a trade-distorting effect.

- Although often cited in discussions about the WTO and biofuel subsidies, the green box provisions of the WTO Agreement on Agriculture (AoA) do not provide a broad category sheltering measures on the basis that they offer some environmental benefits. To qualify as green box support, specific requirements must be met. For example, payments under environmental programmes must be limited to the costs of compliance with the programme …