WORLD TRADE
ORGANIZATIONTN/TE/W/37
7 July 2003
(03-3618)
Committee on Trade and Environment
Special SessionOriginal:  English
APEC TRADE AND ENVIRONMENT WORKSHOP
19-20 May 2003, Bangkok
Submission by Australia
1. This paper provides Members with information on the outcomes of the High-Level APEC
Trade and Environment workshop organized by Australia that was held in Bangkok
from 19-20 May 2003, and consideration of these outcomes by the meeting of APEC MinistersResponsible for Trade held in June 2003.
I. BACKGROUND
2. APEC Ministers Responsible for Trade at their meeting held 29-30 May 2002, in
Puerto Vallarta, Mexico, noted:
Ministers noted discussion on trade and environment since Doha.  They welcomed the
opportunity to enhance the mutual supportiveness of trade and environment.
Ministers reaffirmed that the WTO work and negotiations on the relationship between
trade and environment shall be in accordance with the mandate agreed at Doha.
3. The Joint Statement from the Fourteenth APEC Ministerial Meeting,
held 23-24 October 2002, in Los Cabos, Mexico, sets out the following Ministerial decision under
"Strengthening the Multilateral Trading System":
Ministers welcomed the proposal to hold  a conference on trade and environment to
be convened sometime between April and June 2003 ,…
II. CHAIRMAN’S SUMMARY FROM THE TRADE AND ENVIRONMENT
WORKSHOP HELD MAY 2003
4. In accordance with the mandate from the Ministers meeting held in Los Cabos, a workshop
was held from 19-20 May 2003, in Bangkok, to discuss APEC member economy perspectives on theWTO Doha Declaration trade and environment agenda.  During the workshop, participants suggested
the following principles and actions should form  the basis of future APEC collaboration and
cooperation in this area, particularly in the lead up to the WTO Ministerial meeting to be held in
Cancun, Mexico, in September 2003:
• Enhanced dialogue between trade and environment ministries is important to ensuring
trade and environment policies are mutually supportive and that environmental
measures are soundly based and not misused for trade protectionist purposes.TN/TE/W/37
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• As set out in paragraph 31 of the Doha Mandate and as recognized previously in the
WTO, trade and the environment policies can and must be mutually supportive.APEC member economies will continue to engage constructively in the negotiations
to enhance this situation, while noting the specificity of the mandate agreed to by
Ministers at the WTO Doha Ministerial.
• Environmental measures should be science based and the implementation of
environmental measures by all WTO Members should not constitute arbitrary orunjustifiable trade discrimination or disguised restrictions on trade.
• Bearing in mind the strong interest of APEC Member Economies in trade as an
engine of economic growth, the outcomes from the negotiations should not
undermine economies’ comparative advantage or weaken existing WTO disciplines,consistent with paragraph 32 of the Doha mandate.  APEC member economies
emphasized the need for particular attention to the effect of environmental measures
on market access and the elimination of trade restrictions.
• APEC Member economies agreed to the need for the timely resolution of a decision
on the issue of observer status and information exchange with MEA Secretariats inthe WTO Committee on Trade and Environment in Special Session, and agreed to
work together to achieve this outcome.
• Member economies agreed that negotiations on environmental goods should only
cover end-use criteria, that the classification work that APEC has already developed
should assist the negotiations, and agreed to consider the idea of reducing tariffs for
dual-use products (i.e. those goods used primarily for environmental purposes
however with other potential uses).  It wa s also agreed that consideration should be
given to an examination of goods of interest to developing APEC member economies.
• APEC member economies agreed that there is no need for further activities, including
negotiations, on the Doha mandate paragraph 32 issues.  Specifically it was agreedthe WTO framework of rights and obligations appropriately encompasses the issue of
ecolabelling, and therefore negotiations in this area are not required, particularlygiven the work of the WTO Committee on Technical Barriers to Trade.
• Consistent with paragraph 33 of the Doha mandate, developed APEC member
economies should continue to provide, and where possible enhance, technicalassistance and capacity building to develo ping APEC member economies in the area
of trade and environment.  A number of priorities were identified in this area,however it was agreed that developing  APEC member economies should identify
their needs in this area to set th e basis for future APEC cooperation.
• APEC member economies should continue to consult and where possible coordinate
closely on the WTO trade and environment agenda, including through opportunities
for networking and further research and studies of APEC member interests.
5. This summary report was forwarded for consideration by the APEC WTO Capacity Building
Working Group, APEC Senior Officials Meeting II and the meeting of APEC Ministers Responsible
for Trade held in June 2003.TN/TE/W/37
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III. OUTCOME FROM THE APEC MINISTERS RESPONSIBLE FOR TRADE
MEETING HELD JUNE 2003
6. APEC Ministers Responsible for Trade, representing economies accounting for 47 per cent of
world trade and over 60 per cent of global GDP, met in Khon Kaen, Thailand on 2 - 3 June 2003.  The
following are the relevant paragraphs of the stat ement from this meeting th at instructs that the
summary report from the Trade and Environment Work shop be forwarded to the WTO, and notes the
mutual supportiveness of trade and environment policies and the underpinning economic principles:
Ministers also reaffirmed the importance of WTO capacity building as a tool for
helping developing economies enjoy the full benefits of WTO membership, and as
APEC’s contribution to the successful completion of the DDA.  They applauded the
WTO capacity building activities of APEC members, including the useful discussions
of the recent APEC workshops on Trade and Environment, Geographical Indications,and Investment held in Bangkok in May 2003.  They expressed satisfaction with the
report of APEC’s WTO Capacity Building Group and instructed that it be forwarded
together with the summary reports of all APEC capacity building activities to the
WTO. They called for further strong support for such actions.
Ministers emphasized that trade and environment policies should be mutually
supportive, and that negotiations should not undermine economies’ comparative
advantage nor weaken existing WTO disciplines.
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