WT/CTE/GEN/23  
 
11 July 2016  
(16-3739)  Page: 1/3  
Committee on Trade and Environment  Original: English  
 
IMPLEMENTATION OF TRADE AND ENVIRONMENT PROVISIONS IN PREFERENTIAL 
TRADE AGREEMENTS (PTAS): THE NEW ZEALAND EXPERIENCE 
Statement by New Zealand at the Regular Session of the Committee on Trade and Environment 
(CTE) of 30 June 2016  
_______________ 
 
 
1  INTRODUCTION 
1. New Zealand's approach to trade and environment provisions in preferential trade 
agreements (PTAs) reflects a policy position that is grounded in the Government's belief that such 
agreements are not ends in themselves. They ar e a means to an end. Specifically, they are 
intended to enhance opportunities for economic growth in order to improve living standards, thereby contributing positively to sustainable development. 
2. It is in this context that the approach to trade and environment in New Zealand's trade 
policy is intended to ensure the mutual supportiveness of such inter-related provisions. New Zealand places considerable emphasis on secu ring legally-binding treaty-level outcomes and 
this informs the process of implementation. In this regard, it is important to emphasise that 
securing the mutual supportiveness of trade and the environment in practical terms through New Zealand's PTAs is contingent on the effective implementation of the negotiated outcomes, including the relevant PTA's trade and environment-related provisions and instruments. The 
following sections are divided into three inter-related components. The first section outlines the 
New Zealand context for the way it approaches this important issue. The second identifies how New Zealand seeks to implement the trade and en vironment provisions negotiated through its 
PTAs. The third section briefly summarises the institutional mechanisms that are utilised, with the 
fourth section providing some detail on the practical cooperation that is undertaken through these instruments. The concluding section highlights the fundamental importance New Zealand attaches 
to ensuring that trade policy, including through PTAs, can contribute to positive environmental 
outcomes and notes the importance of looking ahead to consider how trade might contribute to addressing some of society's wider concerns, including on climate change, fish stocks, environmentally harmful subsidies such as fossil fuel subsidies and so on. What is also clear from 
the New Zealand experience is that "one-size" does not always fit all.  
2  THE NEW ZEALAND CONTEXT 3. New Zealand has previously presented to the Committee on Trade and the Environment in 
detail on the trade and environment provisions that we have included in or alongside our PTAs, 
including our rationale for doing so. In sum,  New Zealand includes trade and environment 
provisions in our PTAs for three inter-related reasons, including to: 
• show the commitment of the parties to the pr inciples of sustainable development in the 
context of trade, and acknowledge increasing international interest in how goods and services are produced; 
• ensure that each party is able to benefit from its legitimate comparative advantages and 
compete on a "level playing field"; and 
• provide a means by which the parties can en gage on trade and environment issues of 
shared interest and benefit.  WT/CTE/GEN/23 
 
- 2 - 
 
   
4. We achieve these objectives by negotiat ing the following types of provisions: 
 common understandings and/or commitments as they relate to trade and the environment, 
including the "classical" trade and environment provision which seeks to prevent the use of 
environmental standards as a disguised form of  trade protectionism; and seeks to prevent 
the lowering of environmental standards for a trade advantage.  
 a framework and appropriate mechanism for cooperation; and 
 a means of communication and consultation between the parties on relevant trade and 
environment-related issues.  
5. New Zealand has concluded nine PTAs since the launch of the Doha Round in 2001, all of 
which either include Trade and Environment chapters or have Trade and Environment side 
instruments associated with them. Currently there are nine operative environment 
chapters/instruments with 11 countries. The first such instrument was with Thailand (entered into force in 2005), followed by the agreement with P4  partners (Brunei Darussalam, Singapore and 
Chile, 2006) and then with China (entered into force in 2008). The most recent is with the 
Republic of Korea (entered into force on 20 Dece mber 2015). With the exception of the instrument 
agreed with Thailand, all of the outcomes are legally binding and Treaty-level.   
3  IMPLEMENTATION OF TRADE AND ENVIRONMENT PROVISIONS 
6. It is of course one thing to agree such provisions, their real value is in whether and how the 
Parties implement and use the trade and environment provisions of their PTAs. 
7. New Zealand's strategy to guide the implementa tion of trade and environment provisions in 
PTAs focuses primarily on the gains from cooperation for mutual benefit. These are delivered 
through the range of institutional provisions that are built into each agreement and which are then deployed following ratification of the agreement itself.  
8. Each partner is dealt with on a case-by-case basis where cooperation programmes are based 
on an agreed set of trade and environment-related priorities. These may build on the commitments and understandings or potential pr ojects outlined in the agreement itself. 
4  INSTITUTIONAL MECHANISMS 
9. A successful relationship based on cooperation is possible only if the parties are able to 
communicate effectively. Regular meetings of the parties and regular contact between the national contact points are important aspects of this. In our experience, this helps build trust and 
confidence which not only facilitates project development and implementation, but also makes it 
easier to discuss any issues of concern that might arise.  
5  COOPERATION ACTIVITIES 
10. Since 2006, New Zealand has completed more than 90 cooperation projects with Thailand, 
Chile, Singapore, Brunei Darussalam, Phili ppines, Malaysia, Indonesia and China. 
11. These projects have used a range of cooperation formats, such as capacity-building 
workshops, seminars, study tours, peer reviews, exchanges of experts, ex changes of information, 
and joint research projects. This one-size does not fit all approach seeks to be responsive to and reflect the interests, needs and resources of the participating partners. 
12. The New Zealand experience has been that pr ojects evolve as partners' needs evolve, 
particularly in regards to the types of trade and environment-related challenges that need to be 
addressed.  For example, over time in the deve lopment of the cooperation arrangements from the 
agreement, there has been a discernible shift aw ay from specific capacity-building projects 
towards assistance – in both directions - with policy development and implementation.  
13. Consistent with the framework that guides negotiators, New Zealand's preference remains 
projects that provide both environmental and trade benefits.  These have covered a range of WT/CTE/GEN/23 
 
- 3 - 
 
  issues such as freshwater management, air quality standards and management, environmental 
governance, climate change mitigation and adaptation, biodiversity, vehicle emissions, biofuels, renewable energy development, energy effici ency, and environmental impact assessment. 
14. New Zealand takes a broad and inclusive approach to implementation. Engagement with 
partner countries is led by the Ministry for the Environment working in conjunction with other 
New Zealand government agencies including those responsible for foreign affairs and trade, conservation, agriculture, forestry and fisheries,  and economic development. In addition, local 
authorities, and non-government organisations including Crown Research Institutes, universities, 
iwi/Māori authorities, and businesses are also involved. Policy coherence is a touchstone for all 
engagement in the implementation of environmental provisions. 
15. By engaging with a broad range of stakeholde rs who can contribute funding and their own 
specific expertise, we can often mitigate as far as possible the challenge all partners have faced 
with regard to limited resources – both human and financial. 
16. Cooperation activities often begin with small scale, short term projects that help to build 
confidence amongst the parties through quick and practical outcomes that deliver benefits. As the 
relationship matures, New Zealand looks to engage in larger scale, longer term projects involving multiple stakeholders to deliver durable and sustained benefits that can enhance both trade and 
environment policy outcomes with local, regional and international effect. 
17. A recent example is a four year project with China where the New Zealand and Chinese 
Environment Ministries together with agricultural research organisations, universities and private sector firms collaborated to trial alternative methods of safe disposal of dairy effluent to land. The 
successful outcome provides the basis for a policy change regarding sustainable land management 
and opens the way for large scale dairy development in China that avoids further pollution of waterways. 
6  CONCLUSION 
18. Trade and environment provisions are an import ant part of New Zealand's approach to PTAs, 
but New Zealand's commitment to these issues does not end with the conclusion of negotiations. 
Effective implementation of PTAs - through a range of institutional mechanisms and approaches 
which help to deliver practical cooperation activities – can reinforce the mutual supportiveness of trade and the environment. The practical approach New Zealand and its partners take to the implementation of the outcomes that have been negotiated underscores a shared commitment to 
ensure that trade policy in general and PTAs in particular can support and contribute to meaningful 
and practical outcomes that help drive sustainable development. Importantly too, the New Zealand experience suggests that a one-size-fits-all approa ch is not practical. Rather, bespoke approaches 
are needed to ensure effective and efficient delivery of sustainability-related objectives. 
19. More broadly, both bilaterally and multilatera lly, New Zealand's experience in negotiating 
trade and environment provisions has reinforced th e importance of mutual supportiveness in this 
area. It is clear too that trade policy can and should contribute to addressing global challenges. In 
this context, New Zealand's Minister of Trade, the Hon. Todd McClay recently observed that we 
should "consider how trade can help us achieve the UN Sustainable Development Goals (UNSDGs) agreed by world leaders in September 2015."
1 He observed that several of the SDGs touch on the 
nexus between trade and the environment. UNSDG 12,  for instance, touches on the issue of fossil 
fuel subsidies. There is a question as to how reform in this area might be secured and what role trade policy might play. Similarly, UNSDG 14 is about protecting the oceans and global fish stocks. 
This can be achieved, including through the development of disciplines on fish subsidies. The WTO 
is already contributing with ongoing negotiations in this area and the provisions contained in the 
recently concluded Trans-Pacific Partnership Agreement are similarly seeking to address this 
urgent challenge. Clearly, as the New Zealand Minister concludes "trade agreements can 
contribute to solutions to the most pressing global problems of our times." 
__________  
                                               
1 http://www.oecd.org/forum/oecdyearbook/world-trade-why-ministers-must-act.htm .