WORLD TRADE  
ORGANIZATION  WT/CTE/W/244 
8 December 2006 
 (06-5871) 
Committee on Trade and Environment  
  
 
 
ENVIRONMENTAL REQUIREM ENTS AND MARKET ACCESS 
 
RECENT WORK IN OECD AND UNCTAD 
 
 
Note by the Secretariat 
 
  
This document has been prepa red under the Secretariat's own 
responsibility and without prejudice to the positions of Members 
and to their rights and obligations under the WTO.  
 
 
 
I. INTRODUCTION    
1. Pursuant to Paragraph 32(i) of  the Doha Ministerial Declaration, the Committee on Trade and 
Environment (CTE) is instructed, "in pursuing work on  all items on its agenda within its current terms 
of reference, to give particular attention to:  th e effect of environmental measures on market access, 
especially in relation to developing countries, in particular the least-deve loped among them, and those 
situations in which the eliminati on or reduction of trade restricti ons and distortions would benefit 
trade, the environment and development." 
2. At its meeting of 5 July 2006, with a view to facilitate moving forward the Committee's 
discussion under Paragraph 32(i) on environmental requirements and market access, the CTE requested the Secretariat to prepare a factual not e summarizing recent work regarding environmental 
requirements and market access which had been carried  out in other international organizations as 
well as in relevant WTO bodies.
1  
3. This note has been prepared in r esponse to the first part of that request.  It takes stock of the 
findings of recent studies on environmental require ments and market access undertaken by OECD and 
UNCTAD, namely, the OECD Trade Policy Studi es 2005 and the UNCTAD Trade and Environment 
Review 2006.2  It highlights some key points from the tw o initiatives that could help generate further 
discussions in the CTE on environmental requirements and market access.  These points relate to recent trends in environmental requirements;  ma rket access difficulties faced by developing-country 
exporters;  developing-country responses to envi ronmental requirements;  and approaches to 
addressing market-access difficulties faced by developing countries at national and multilateral levels.   
                                        
1 WT/CTE/M/42, paragraph 21  
2 It may be recalled that the OECD Trade Policy St udies 2005 and the UNCTAD Trade and Environment Review 
2006 were presented to the CTE by the representatives of thes e two observer organizations at the CTE Regular meeting of 5 
July 2006 (WT/CTE/M/42).       WT/CTE/W/244 
Page 2  
 
  4. In building on previous work in this area, it is recalled that in 1 996, a note entitled "The 
Effects of Environmental Measures on Market Access, Especially in Relation to Developing Countries, in Particular to the Least Developed Among Them"
3 was prepared in response to requests 
from delegations of the CTE for background informati on.  The first section of this note took stock of 
work on the effects of environmental measures on in ternational trade which had taken place in the 
WTO and other fora such as the OECD4 and UNCTAD5 and listed the kinds of trade effects and 
concerns which it had been suggest ed could arise, among others, p ackaging, eco-labelling and product 
standards.  The second addressed the particular situ ation of developing and l east developed countries 
and illustrated the practical implications envi ronmental measures could have on market access 
drawing on the UNCTAD/UNDP series of country case studies on trade, competitiveness and 
environment carried out in 1994 - 1995.       
5. In 1999, a note entitled "Technical Barriers to  the Market Access of Developing Countries"6  
was prepared in response to a request by the Comm ittee on Technical Barriers to Trade (CTBT) for 
the Secretariat to establish the state of knowledge concerning the technical barriers to the market 
access of developing country suppliers, especially small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs), as a 
result of standards, technical regulations and c onformity assessment procedures.  The note included a 
section on environmental requirements, responding  to a request by the Committee on Trade and 
Environment (CTE) for a regular update of the e ffects of eco-labelling requirements on the market 
access of developing countries.  The note inter alia  surveyed relevant analysis carried out, including 
by UNCTAD7, on the impact of environmental polici es on the market access and competitiveness of 
developing countries based on eleven country studies. 
6. The present note is prepared under the Secretariat's own responsibility.  It is not intended to 
cover exhaustively all the envir onmental requirements and market access issues contained in the 
OECD and UNCTAD initiatives.  Nor should the pape r be seen as an attempt to prioritize issues, 
subjects or concerns raised by individual Members in this field.  Finally, this paper does not prejudice 
the right of any Member to raise other views rela ted to Paragraph 32(i) of the Doha Ministerial 
Declaration. 
II. BACKGROUND 
A. OECD  TRADE POLICY STUDIES 2005:   ENVIRONMENTAL REQUIREMENTS AND MARKET 
ACCESS8 
7. In 2001, the OECD's Joint Working Party on Trade and Environment (JWPTE) embarked on 
a programme of work to enhance understanding of  the trade effects, perceived or actual, on 
developing country exports of the environmental re gulations and other technical measures taken by 
the governments of OECD members and private bodies.   It was especially concerned to establish the 
extent to which such measures might have a ffected market access for developing countries.9  The first 
                                        
3 WT/CTE/W/26 
4 OECD, Report on Trade and Environment to the OECD Council of Ministers, May 1995 
5 UNCTAD, Effects of Environmental Policies, Standa rds on Market Access and Competitiveness with Special 
Reference to Developing Countries, and UNCTAD Empirical Studi es, "Environment Policies, Trade and Competitiveness:  
conceptual and empirical issues", Report by the UNC TAD Secretariat, March 1995 . 
6 WT/CTE/W/101 
7 Jha, Markandya, and Vossenaar, Reconciling Trade and Environment:  Lessons from Core Studies in Developing 
Countries, published in asso ciation with UNCTAD, 1999. 
8 Hereafter referred to as OECD Studies    
9 OECD Studies page 3  WT/CTE/W/244 
 Page 3 
 
 
  phase of work involved the preparation of 21 case studies, covering a wide range of importing and 
exporting countries, sectors, and types of environmental measures.10  
8. The case studies formed the b asis for an OECD Global Forum on Trade (Workshop on 
Environmental Requirements and Market Access:  Addressing Developing-country Concerns, 27-28 
November 2002, New Delhi, India), which explored  concerns common to developing countries in 
connection with several topics raised by the OE CD case studies, as well as work undertaken by 
UNCTAD.  Topics included the elaboration of environmental and certain SPS measures, trade issues and developing-country responses, and responses to developing-country concerns.  Among other 
things, the participants discussed more and bette r transparency and communication with developing 
countries on new and revised technical regulations and voluntary schemes;  institutional responses to 
the proliferation of voluntary standards and t echnical regulations affecting developing-country 
exports;  and effective capacity building and technical assistance appropriate to the needs of 
developing countries.  
9. In December 2002, the JWPTE began taking stock of  lessons learnt from the case studies and 
discussions undertaken.  These lessons related to  specific market access problems arising from 
environmental and health-and-safety requirements and to  approaches that contributed to solving them.  
The resulting stocktaking forms Part I of the OECD  Trade Policy Studies 2005;  Part II contains the 
case studies.
11  The chapter on "Lessons from National E xperiences" focuses on the approaches that 
helped to address market access di fficulties, i.e. those addressing information flows and capacity 
building needs of developing-country exporters that  have been undertaken both by governments and 
non-governmental organizations (NGOs) and those involving procedures for developing, 
implementing and reviewing regulations and standards.12  The emphasis has been on understanding 
the reactions of the main actors and in particular  how each has contributed to solving the problems 
encountered.  An effort has been ma de to identify the practical tools that have been developed or are 
being developed to respond to the information and capacity constraint s of developing countries, as 
well as the procedures for developing measures, including notification and consultation procedures.13 
B.    UNCTAD  TRADE AND ENVIRONMENT REVIEW 2006:   ENVIRONMENTAL REQUIREMENTS 
AND MARKET ACCESS FOR DEVELOPING COUNTRIES :  DEVELOPING PRO-ACTIVE 
APPROACHES AND STRATEGIES14   
10. The UNCTAD Trade and Environment Review  2006 analyzes the relationship between 
environmental requirements and market access for developing countries.  It covers the following three issues:  the emerging environmental and rela ted health requirements (ERHRs);  the new 
environmental requirements for electrical and electronic equipment (EEE);  and the market 
opportunities for organic agricultural exports from devel oping countries.  It attempts to conceptualize 
                                        
10 The 21 case studies are on:  (i) government regulations:  manufactured products:  limits of formaldehyde in 
textiles;  limits on aromatic amines in text iles coloured with azo dyes;  limits on chemical residues in leather goods;  limits  
on cadmium in plastics and PVC;  US impor t procedures for petrol or gasoline;   (2) government regulations:  products of 
agriculture, forestry and fishing:  limits of pesticide residues in snow peas;  limits on pesticid e residues in tea;  limiting 
pesticide residues in pineapples;  phytosan itary measures affecting the import of fresh durian fruit;  sustainability labels fo r 
wood and wood products;  adapting turtle-excluder devices to local conditions;  phasing out methyl bromide;  (3) 
government regulations affecting trade in products of organic ag riculture:  standards for organic foods and beverages;  the 
European Union's import procedures for orga nic foods and beverages;  Japan's regula tions affecting the la belling of organic 
plant products;  regulating "organic" food la bels in the United States;  (4)  privat e industry and NGO initiatives:  eco-labels  
for cut flowers;  mangrove protection initiatives and farmed shr imp;  private certification of a fishery as sustainable;  the 
International Fruit Container Organization (IF CO) returnable packaging initiative;  and developing an international standard 
for "Green" tourism.                         
11 OECD Studies page 3 
12 OECD Studies page 21 
13 OECD Studies page 43 
14 Hereafter referred to as UNCTAD Review WT/CTE/W/244 
Page 4  
 
  key issues at stake, provide practical information,  and identify possible actions at the national and 
multilateral levels that could assist developing co untries to strengthen their capacities to respond to 
emerging ERHRs and to take advantage of new opportunities.  It analyses adjustment strategies in developing countries to new environmental require ments for EEE and market opportunities for en-
vironmentally preferable products, with a special  emphasis on organic agricultural exports from 
developing countries.
15   
11. The Review suggests what governments and ot her key stakeholders in developed and 
developing countries could do to limit the trade-restri cting effects of environmental requirements and 
to maximize their contribution to sustai nable development in developing countries.16  It argues that 
exporting developing countries will have to become mu ch more strategic and pr oactive in coping with 
environmental requirements, e.g. in terms of domestic awareness, commitment and cooperation.  
These countries need to participate, both in the WT O with regard to mandatory requirements, and 
along supply chains with regard to voluntary standa rds, with a view to limiting negative impacts of 
new environmental requirements.  Furthermore, th ey should learn to exploit new market opportunities 
created by new requirements and the growing market for environmentally preferable products.  At the 
multilateral level, the Review takes a view on  the role of WTO rules for limiting the trade 
restrictiveness of environmental requirements and addresses what UNCTAD can do.17 
III. SOME KEY POINTS FROM THE TWO INITIATIVES  
12. The OECD Studies and UNCTAD Review touc h upon a wide range of environmental 
requirements on manufactured and agricultural produc ts prepared by government and/or private 
industry and NGOs.  The various case studies reveal  a number of trends in recent environmental 
requirements, and illustrate how developing country exporters face some generic market-access 
difficulties in this area and how their responses vary .  Both works have identified existing and/or 
possible actions at the national and multilateral leve ls that could contribute to solving difficulties 
encountered.   
B. RECENT TRENDS     
13. According to the OECD Studies, environmenta l requirements come in two basic forms.  
Those aimed at ensuring a minimum standard or product characteristic usually take the form of 
technical regulations, such as product-content requi rements or maximum residue limits (MRLs), or 
the imposition of packaging or disposal requirements.  Environmental requirements addressing earlier phases of the product cycle – processes or producti on methods – as well as post-product phases, tend 
to make the form of (voluntary) standards,  and may lead to the award of eco-labels.
18  In the OECD 
and UNCTAD studies, the following recent trends can be observed in the various new environmental 
requirements:  
2. Growing complexity in requirements   
14. According to the UNCTAD Review, consumers,  producers, regulators and stakeholders are 
becoming increasingly aware of environmental and health problems, and are looking for versatile 
tools to address them effectively.19  As a result, in particular in  developed countries, environmental 
requirements are becoming increasingly complex,  aimed at fulfilling not only environmental 
objectives but often also other public policy objectiv es.  These environmental and related health 
requirements (ERHRs) may be con cerned with health, food safety or occupational safety, and also 
                                        
15 UNCTAD Review page xiii 
16 UNCTAD Review page iii  
17 UNCTAD Review page iii  
18 OECD Studies page 12 
19 UNCTAD Review page 9  WT/CTE/W/244 
 Page 5 
 
 
  have an environmental aspect in product pro duction, use or recovery processes.  These multi-
dimensional requirements are complex, with broad imp acts, stringent and subject to frequent changes.  
They often differ from market to market and si nce they are multidimensional and involve various 
groups of stakeholders, are more difficult to harmonize.20   
3. Rise in private sector voluntary initiatives  
15. The OECD Studies suggests that among the two forms of environmental requirements – 
namely, mandatory technical regulations and vol untary standards – the importance of private 
voluntary standards is on the rise.  However, a clear separation between mandatory and voluntary 
requirements is not clearly felt at the level of the producer and exporter.  Even when a standard is 
voluntary de jure , it may in many cases have to be met in order for exporters to access certain 
markets.21  In the UNCTAD Review, it is pointed out that voluntary ERHRs increasingly play a key 
role in many sectors and  may include more stringe nt specifications than those which are mandatory.22  
They are growing in number and evolving quickly, if they become integrated into supply chains – as 
in the case of sustainable forest management sta ndards - they can become commercial imperatives for 
certain markets.23   
4. Rise in global supply-chain driven requirements 
16. According to the UNCTAD Review, there is an increase in requirements imposed by retailers 
along the supply chain and when globalized production obliges exporters to meet specifications required by multinational companies.  For example, in the EEE sector, global supply-chain driven requirements are on the rise because production of components and assembly operations are 
increasingly outsourced.
24  This phenomenon plays a key role in the adjustment to new environmental 
requirements, in particular by small and medium-siz ed enterprises (SMEs) that provide inputs into the 
manufactured product for export.  They have to abid e by requirements set by global supply chains or 
risk being phased out  as input providers.25  With respect to the food  sector, in the UNCTAD study on 
ERHRs, an example of global purchasing standards h as been given to the Good Agricultural Practice 
(EurepGAP) launched by the Euro Retailer Produce Working Group (EUREP), which includes the 
leading supermarkets in Europe.26     
C. DIFFICULTIES FACED BY DEVELOPING -COUNTRY EXPORTERS  
17. Both the OECD Studies and the UNCTAD Review point to a number of generic market-
access difficulties faced by developing country exporters.  These include problems related to 
information, lack of needed capacity and resources,  proliferation of heter ogeneous requirements and 
conformity assessment procedures.  The OECD Studies points out that exporters' difficulties in 
adjusting to the standards and regulations of importers do not call into question the legitimate 
objectives of the protection of the environment, human, animal and plant life and health, although 
they may impose a very heavy burden on exporters.27  The UNCTAD Review states that many 
developing countries have the political will to comply  with requirements in key export markets but 
often are prevented from doing so because of technical and human resource problems and 
fundamental institutional weaknesses.28     
                                        
20 UNCTAD Review page 5 
21 OECD Studies page 43 
22 UNCTAD Review page 6  
23 UNCTAD Review page 9 
24 UNCTAD Review page 89 
25 UNCTAD Review pages xvii and xviii 
26 UNCTAD Review page 7 
27 OECD Studies page 33 
28 UNCTAD Review page 23 WT/CTE/W/244 
Page 6  
 
  18. The problems include, first, those related to in formation.  According to the OECD Studies, 
although there is usually no real problem in getting information to a country, getting it distributed in a 
timely manner to domestic industry requires effect ive communication networks, which could be a  
problem, particularly for LDCs and SMEs in developing countries.
29  In some cases, the exporting 
country's government or industry may be caught by surprise and therefore have insufficient time to 
respond  to the requirements before its exports ar e affected.  Although nowadays, with WTO 
notification procedures on draft regulations and the possibility of diffusion through the internet, this 
problem has become less common, it may still occu r in the case of least developed countries and 
industries dominated by SMEs.30  Moreover, the lack of awareness could cause problems even in 
cases where it would be easy to conform with require ments.  According to the OECD Studies, there 
are cases where there may be little knowledge about an environmental measure within the exporting 
country, such that violations continue to o ccur years after the measure goes into effect.31   
19. A second problem concerns weakness es related to lack of the needed capacity and resources:  
in some cases, exporters may be unable to absorb all important details of the importer's measures due 
to technical complexity.32  Moreover, exporters, in particular  SMEs, may not have the knowledge 
required to comply with a requirement.  This is particularly the case when changes in processes or 
production methods are required and knowledge about  how to meet the new requirement under local 
conditions may be lacking because of insufficient prior research.33  In other instances, where major 
investment in productive capital or pollution contro l are required, the exporter may lack the necessary 
capital.  This type of problem typically arises in industries that require production-specific machinery and chemical agents.
34  Furthermore, difficulties may arise due to the lack of substitution products.  
Substitutes are sometimes proprietary or expensive and not readily available to developing-country 
exporters, in particular SMEs, due to th eir high costs or technical complexity.35   
20. A third problem related to the proliferation of  heterogeneous requirements:  difficulties arise 
from having both to keep up with changing measures and to deal with divergent requirements in 
different markets.36  The associated costs include the loss of economies of scale, the costs on 
information and conformity assessment.37  Furthermore, according to the OECD Studies, concerns can 
still be heard regarding requirements that assume " one size fits all" and therefore do not take the 
special circumstances of developing countries into account.38  Both the OECD Studies and the 
UNCTAD Review point to possible solutions by m eans of international st andards and equivalence 
agreements.  However, according to the OECD Studi es, so far, international standards have been 
developed for only a small fracti on of the environmental objectives,39 and developing countries can 
encounter difficulties in negotia ting equivalence agreements,40 for instance in the area of organic 
agricultural products.41  
21. Finally, a further difficulty related to confor mity assessment procedures that exporters must 
follow to demonstrate compliance with requirements:   the OECD Studies points to a lack of the 
supporting infrastructure, comprising laboratories, metrology, data and trained agents, as well as the 
cost of the relevant technologies.  Problems occur most often when the importer has fixed a limit on 
                                        
29 OECD Studies page 23 
30 OECD Studies page 13 
31 OECD Studies page 14 
32 OECD Studies page 13 
33 OECD Studies pages 13-14 
34 OECD Studies page 14 
35 OECD Studies page 26 
36 OECD Studies page 25 
37 OECD Studies page 35 
38 OECD Studies page 12  
39 OECD Studies page 35 
40 OECD Studies page 26 
41 UNCTAD Review pages 171-174  WT/CTE/W/244 
 Page 7 
 
 
  residues close to the detection limit for the substan ce, which has to be measured by sophisticated 
laboratory equipment operated by highly qualified technicians.42  Another difficulty relates to the cost 
of certification and the conditions that must be fu lfilled for the certifier to be recognized or accredited 
in the importing country.  According to the UNCT AD study on products of organic agriculture, in 
many countries local certification bodies are not accredited by the importing countries' authorities.  
This leaves farmers with no choice but to pay the high cost of certification by a certifying body 
recognized by, and usually based in, the importing country.  The situation can be worse if the 
producers are smallholders and need to provide “p roof of compliance” with diverse requirements in 
different importing countries.43  Although mutual recognition ag reements (MRAs) can prevent a 
multiplication of certifications, according to the OECD studies, the use of this type of instrument has 
generally been quite limited, since the conclusion of MRAs tend to be complex and time-consuming.44   
D. DEVELOPING COUNTRY RESPONSES      
22. Developing-country responses to environmental requirements may vary.  They depend, for 
instance, on the characteristics of the industry, producers and countries involved.  According to the OECD Studies, in the case of a manufacturing industry – for example, a producer of textiles or dyes – 
many of the large producers may be partly or w holly owned subsidiaries of companies based in 
OECD countries, and therefore able to obtain know ledge about substitutes and capital, if necessary.  
The rest of the industry, comprising locally ow ned SMEs, may be much less able to adapt.
45  The 
UNCTAD Review illustrates how the more adva nced developing countries tend to attract 
subcontractors, subsidiaries and branches of large companies from developed countries, and the latter 
tend therefore to inform them about, or prepare them  for, the introduction of technical requirements.  
However, least developed countries (LDCs) are partic ularly hard hit by new ERHRs due to their lack 
of institutional, technical and managerial capacity , and adjustment costs to meet new ERHRs in 
export markets are higher for them than for other developing countries.46  The following various 
responses by developing countries can be ob served in the OECD and UNCTAD studies:   
2. A firefighting approach – the example of ERHRs    
23. According to the UNCTAD Review, it appears th at developing countries for the most part 
adopt a firefighting, rather than strategic, appro ach to addressing ERHRs in their key export markets.  
To date, many developing countries exporters have onl y been able to react to, not anticipate, new 
ERHRs.  In the absence of a proac tive approach, attention will more likely continue to be focused on 
preventing negative impacts than on harnessing the su stainable development benefits for the national 
economy, including to maximize positive effects assoc iated with environmental protection, resource 
and material-efficiency, occupational safety and pu blic health, and thereby raising productivity and 
welfare gains.47     
3. A holistic approach – the example of the EEE sector    
24. The OECD Studies points out that there are some encouraging signs of movement in the ways 
developing countries address environmental require ments, from a reactive approach of problem-
solving to a more holistic approach that attemp ts to promote reconciliation at a high level of 
environmental protection and stronger growth in exports.  The impetus appears to be coming above all 
from a desire to promote policy coherence and fro m efforts to make government regulations more 
                                        
42 OECD studies pages 13 and 15 
43 UNCTAD Review pages 169-170 
44 OECD Studies page 42 
45 OECD Studies page 14 
46 UNCTAD Review page xv  
47 UNCTAD Review page 10 WT/CTE/W/244 
Page 8  
 
  efficient and trade-friendly in national regulatory reform exercises.
48  Proactive policies of this kind 
can be observed in the UNCTAD study in China, the Philippines and Thailand on their adjustment 
strategies to new EEE environmental requirements in  the global markets and their need to address 
problems related to the growing domestically genera ted EEE waste.  The policies referred to include 
information-sharing and understandi ng on environmental requirements in key export markets;  
participation in standard-setting c onsultations where there are significant implications for exporters;  
coordinating efforts to assess implications of new requirements;  raising the level of awareness on environmental and health issues;  improving infr astructure for waste mana gement;  developing an 
appropriate legislative framework and enforcing environmental regulations ;  collaboration between 
government and private sector stakeholders;  trai ning and strengthened resear ch;  and enhancing the 
capabilities of SMEs to adopt environmental management systems.
49      
4.  New market opportunities – the example of organic agricultural products   
25. The UNCTAD Review points out that there is  a general growing demand in developed 
countries for environmentally preferable products, and,  in particular, for organic agricultural products, 
that has been growing much faster than overall f ood markets over the past two decades.  Furthermore, 
the scope of organic agricultural products has be en rapidly expanding into categories other than 
organic food and beverages (for example, organic pe t food, cosmetics, cleaning products, textiles and 
mattresses).  This presents some promising export opportunities for producers and exporters of 
organic products in developing countries for such  reasons as the following:  domestic supply in 
developed countries is expected to remain belo w domestic demand for most organic products for 
some years to come;  the long-standing interest of developed-county consumers in tropical products 
and the emerging appetite for ethnic food create de mand for organic products that cannot be easily 
supplied by domestic producers;  and developing countries may ha ve an inherent comparative 
advantage in organic production, due to their re latively abundant labour s upply and relatively lower 
use of agro-chemicals in agricultu re.  However, in order to take advantage of these opportunities, 
developing-country producers and exporters must successfully address a number of challenges:  
meeting standards that may not be entirely appropriate to the local environment;  following 
administrative and import procedures;  and overcomi ng the high cost associated with transportation, 
storage and certification.  Furthermore, since organi c agriculture is fairly knowledge-intensive, it is a 
challenge to get the knowledge to the farmers, in particular those smallholders in remote areas.50  
26. According to the UNCTAD Review, in addition to income generation, organic agriculture 
also has the potential to offer a range of local and national sustainable development opportunities.  
Organic agriculture has a less detrimental effect on the environment and on the health of agricultural 
workers than conventional agricultu re based on chemical inputs. The Review refers to a number of 
studies that have indicated that the application of organic techniques to the agriculture practiced by 
smallholders in many developing c ountries, with its low external i nputs, can lead to an increase in 
yields and hence enhanced food security.51        
E. RESPONSES TO DEVELOPING -COUNTRY CONCERNS AT THE NATIONAL AND MULTILATERAL 
LEVELS   
27. To address market-access diffi culties faced by developing countries, approaches undertaken 
by governments and non-governmental organizations at  the national and multilateral levels have been 
identified in the OECD Studies and UNCTAD Revi ew.  They include the following areas:  (i) 
information and communication;  (ii) procedur es for developing, implementing and reviewing 
regulations and standards;  and (iii) technical assistance and capacity building.    
                                        
48 OECD Studies pages 18 and 44-45 
49 UNCTAD Review pages 73-88 
50 UNCTAD Review pages xviii-xix and 153-154 
51 UNCTAD Review page xviii  WT/CTE/W/244 
 Page 9 
 
 
  2. Information and communication   
28. Improving information flows to key actors can include providing  information about:  the 
requirements set out in an importer's environmen tal measure;  market opportunities offered by the 
measure in question;  and the most effective ways for producers to adjust to the measure.52  T h e  
OECD Studies and UNCTAD Review give examples of re levant actions that have been taken at the 
national and multilateral levels.  Government initia tives to improve the flow of information to 
developing countries aimed at minimizing adverse trad e impacts and ensuring that information is well 
disseminated among potential exporters include the Ne therlands' Centre for the Promotion of Imports 
from Developing Countries, which provides info rmation by means of an online database on 
environmental legislation in the EU and its member  States;  and Brazil's national standards institute 
(INMETRO), which operates an early warning system  aimed at helping exporters to anticipate new 
environmental requirements.53   
29. Other useful vehicles for disseminating inform ation include holding workshops, organizing 
seminars, sending information missions, or undertak ing longer-term outreaching projects to exporters.  
Direct interaction with producers and exporters provides an effective means of transferring 
information and knowledge.54  According to the OECD Studies , workshops organized by OECD 
countries in developing countries have allowed ex porters to raise questions on requirements, and 
organizers to provide information and to recei ve feedback from exporters on their difficulties.55  In 
certain instances, private standard-setting bodies have endeavoured to ensure that producers in 
developing countries are aware of their standards an d know how to participate in voluntary schemes.  
Such "outreach" activities are carried out most commonly by international eco-labelling schemes.56  
According to the UNCTAD Review, at the multilatera l level, UNCTAD’s Consultative Task Force on 
Environmental Requirements and Market Access fo r Developing Countries (CTF) aims to promote 
dialogue between developed and developing countries,  and enhancing an understanding of the trends 
in environmental requirements and th e appropriate adjustment policies in  developing countries.  In the 
case of voluntary ERHRs, the CTF provides an exch ange mechanism for stakeholders, the private 
sector, NGOs and governments, as well as a fo rum for experience-sharing among developing 
countries on their adjustment s to these new requirements.57 
3. Procedures for the development, implem entation and review of regulations and 
standards     
30. According to the OECD Studies, environmental requirements, if well designed and 
implemented, can create new export opportunitie s for developing countries while improving the 
environmental performance of the affected industries.58  The OECD case studies attest that 
international environmental NGOs and businesses have shown themselves to be responsive to 
developing countries' concerns, a nd have often consulted with de veloping-country representatives of 
affected industries when developing their standard s.  Examples are the Marine Stewardship Council 
and the Green Globe 21 programme.59  To minimize trade barriers, both the OECD and UNCTAD 
studies refer to the WTO rules under the TBT and SPS Agreements for the preparation, adoption and 
implementation of environment-rela ted regulations and standards, and point to the disciplines on 
transparency, such as notification and consultation requirements.   
                                        
52 OECD Studies page 29 
53 OECD Studies page 16 
54 OECD Studies page 17 
55 OECD Studies page 17 
56 OECD Studies pages 16 and 32 
57 UNCTAD Review pages xvi and 25-26 
58 OECD Studies page 11 
59 OECD Studies page 16 WT/CTE/W/244 
Page 10  
 
  31. To help ensure that the design and implemen tation of regulations or standards achieve 
environmental objectives in the least trade-distorting manner, a number of practical steps have been highlighted in terms of good regulatory practice at  the design stage of new requirements.  In the 
UNCTAD Review, examples are given of the need for inclusiveness and transparency;  facilitating 
participation of developing coun try representatives in stakeholder consultations;  and ex-ante 
assessments.
60  In the OECD studies, further examples are given of the usefulness of periodic reviews 
to avoid regulations and standards becoming obsolete or out of date;61  and delays in implementation 
to address difficulties faced by developing countries.62   
4. Capacity building and technical assistance  
32. Both the OECD Studies and the UNCTAD Review illu strate the substantial role of targeted 
capacity-building initiatives from bilateral and multilateral donors.  The OECD Studies points out that 
capacity building may cover a broad range of act ivities aimed at improving a country's human, 
scientific, technological, organizational and institutio nal capacities and the resources available to it.  
Although these initiatives may not be able to address s hort-term problems of market access, in the 
long run they can increase the ability of exporters and their governments to anticipate and react 
positively to new environmental requirements.63   
33. In this respect, reference has been made to Article 11 of the TBT Agreement regarding 
bilateral technical assistance activities among WTO Me mbers in the areas of technical regulations, 
standards and conformity assessment procedures.  An example is given in the OECD study which 
illustrates how Guatemalan producers were able  to adapt their production to US snow pea 
requirements as a result of advice received from the United States and the detection equipment 
provided by German de velopment cooperation.64   
34. At the multilateral level, concerning organi c agriculture, the UNCTAD Review notes the 
work of the International Task Force on Harmonizat ion and Equivalence in Organic Agriculture (ITF) 
created by UNCTAD, the International Federation of Organic Agricultural Movements (IFOAM) and 
the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO), as well as the UNEP-UNCTAD 
Capacity Building Task Force on Trade, Environment and Development (CBTF).65  T h e  O E C D  
Studies also refers to some multilateral environm ental agreement (MEA) initiatives to address global 
environmental problems, such as the Montreal Protoc ol's mechanism that inte nds to provide financial 
and technical assistance, including technology transfer , to reduce the cost to developing countries of 
adjustment measures to control emissions of ozone-depleting substances.66   
35. On private organization initiatives, the OECD Study gives the example of the Marine 
Stewardship Council initiatives to assist devel oping countries in sustainable managed fishery.67  
Moreover, it highlights the usefulness of south-sout h cooperation in sharing information, tools and 
national experiences among countries with similar development problems;  and the usefulness of 
direct interaction and joint research activiti es to transfer information and knowledge.68   
____________ 
                                        
60 UNCTAD Review page 12 
61 OECD Studies page 42 
62 OECD Studies page 40 
63 OECD Studies page 17 
64 OECD Studies pages 32-33 
65 UNCTAD Review page xiii 
66 OECD Studies page 17 
67 OECD Studies page 17 
68 OECD Studies page 17