WORLD TRADE  
ORGANIZATION  WT/CTE/17 
30 November 2010 
 
 (10-6435) 
Committee on Trade and Environment  
  
 
REPORT (2010) OF THE COMMIT TEE ON TRADE AND ENVIRONMENT 
 
 
1. The Committee on Trade and Environment in Regular Session (CTE) met four times in 2010 
under the Chairmanship of Ambassador Bozkurt Ar an (Turkey) until Februa ry 2010, and Ambassador 
Eduardo Muñoz Gómez (Colombia) from February 2010 onwards.  Formal meetings were held on 
17 February 2010
1, 29 September 20102 and 9 November 2010,3 and informal meetings took place on 
17 February 2010, 2 July 2010 and 29 September 2010. 
2. The work of the CTE was organized in acco rdance with the mandate established in the 
Doha Ministerial Declaration, Paragraphs 32, 33 and 51.  Under Paragra ph 32, work was conducted 
on environmental requirements and market access is sues (Paragraph 32(i)) and labelling requirements 
for environmental purposes (Paragraph 32(iii)).  Unde r Paragraph 33, several statements were made 
on technical assistance and capacity building.  No discussion took place under Paragraph 32(ii) (relevant provisions of the TRIPS Agreement) a nd Paragraph 51 (developm ental and environmental 
aspects of the negotiations).  As in the past , the CTE received information on the current 
developments in Multilateral Envi ronmental Agreements (MEAs). 
3. In addition, information events were organized by the Secretariat back-to-back with meetings 
of the CTE:  the Secretariat made a presentation on the joint WTO-UNEP report "Trade and climate change" on 16 February 2010;  th e "Information Session on Produc t Carbon Footprint and Labelling 
Schemes" was held on 17 February 2010
4; and the "Workshop on the Linkages between Trade, 
Transport and the Environment" took place on 9 November 2010. 
I. PARAGRAPH 32 
A. PARAGRAPH 32(I) (ENVIRONMENTAL REQUIREMENTS AND MARKET ACCESS ) 
The effect of environmental measures on market access, especially in relation to developing 
countries, in particular the least-developed am ong them, and those situations in which the 
elimination or reduction of trade restric tions and distortions w ould benefit trade, the 
environment and development.  
4. CTE discussions under Paragraph 32(i) gave pa rticular attention to carbon footprint and 
labelling schemes.  On 17 February 2010, an Information Session on Product Carbon Footprint and 
Labelling Schemes  was held in response to the requests by a number of Members for information on 
the various initiatives being develope d at the national and international levels in the areas of product 
carbon footprint standards and labelling schemes.   
                                                      
1 "Report of the Meeting held on 17 February 2010", Note by the Secretariat, WT/CTE/M/49, 
7 April 2010. 
2 "Report of the Meeting held on 29 September 2010", Note by the Secretariat, WT/CTE/M/50, 
2 November 2010. 
3 The report on the CTE meeting held on 9 November 2010 will be circulated under WT/CTE/M/51. 
4 "Summary Report of the Information Session on  Product Carbon Footprint and Labelling Schemes", 
Note by the Secretariat, WT/CTE/M/49/Add.1, 28 May 2010. WT/CTE/17 
Page 2  
 
  5. At the session, a representative of the United Kingdom Department for Environment, Food 
and Rural Affairs (DEFRA) shared national experi ence and lessons learnt in developing a carbon 
footprint specification methodology, titled "Publicly  Available Specification 2050" (PAS 2050).  The 
information session also included presentations from re presentatives of the International Organization 
for Standardization (ISO) and the World Resources Institute/World Business Council for Sustainable 
Development (WRI/WBCSD).  Both provided updat es on the development of international standard 
carbon footprint methodologies, respectively, ISO 14067, and the Greenhouse Gas (GHG) Protocol Initiative ("Scope 3 Accounting and Reporting Standa rd", and "Product Life Cycle Accounting and 
Reporting Standard").  A representative of the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and 
Development (OECD) also presented a general ove rview of product carbon footprint and labelling 
schemes, and challenges related to th eir development and implementation. 
6. Carbon footprint and labelling schemes were further discussed at the 29 September 2010 
meeting.  On 9 July 2010, the Chair sent a fax to delegation to invite both (i) Members developing any new national carbon footprint schemes to share their experience with the CTE, and (ii) other Members 
to share the experience of their producers a nd exporters, in complying with such schemes.
5  Following 
this request, New Zealand and Chile shared thei r national experiences on the development of new 
carbon footprint and labelling schemes.  The represe ntative of New Zealand presented the national 
GHG Footprinting Strategy, explaining that it wa s designed to support exporters in response to 
overseas demand for information about GHG emissions  from their supply chains.  Chile presented 
information about emerging carbon footprint and labelling schemes in the forestry, wine and agriculture sectors.  The representative of the Republic of Korea briefly shared their national 
experience in developing a voluntary carbon footpr int labelling scheme, pursuant to which the 
Ministry of Environment would issue "low carbon product certificates" to those products with carbon footprints verified to be below a particular threshold. 
7. In 2010, Members have shown a clear interest in the topic of carbon fo otprint and labelling, 
including with relation to: the competitiveness impli cations of these schemes for domestic industry;  
the cost and market access impact of these schem es for developing countries and small and medium-
sized enterprises (SMEs), especially in the contex t of multiple, overlapping schemes and standards;  
the potential non-neutrality of carbon footprint methodologies; the lack of a uniform methodology for calculating carbon footprints; the risk of discrimin ation on the basis of non-product related processes 
and production methods (PPMs);  the role of carbon f ootprint for identifying emissions "hotspots" in 
the production process; and the relevance of  the TBT Agreement to this discussion. 
8. Also under Paragraph 32 (i), first part, "Envir onmental Requirements and Market Access" the 
Kingdom of Saudi Arabia raised concerns related to barriers to the dissemination of environmental 
technologies during the 29 September 2010 CTE mee ting and presented a communication to the CTE 
on Technology Dissemination, at the 9 November 2010 CTE meeting.
6  The communication 
highlighted the importance of identifying and eliminating barriers to the dissemination of 
environmental technologies, in particular carbon capt ure and storage, so as to improve their cost 
competitiveness and facilitate uptake by all stake holders, including the private sector.  An initial 
discussion on this proposal took place involving several  Members, the majority of whom welcomed 
the proposal.  
9. Following a suggestion made by some Members at the informal meeting on 
29 September 2010, the WTO Secretariat prepared an informal note summarizing discussions on 
                                                      
5 "Work Programme for the CTE in the Second Half of 2010", Fax from the Chairman, 9 July 2010. 
6 "Technology Dissemination", Communication by the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia, WT/CTE/W/247, 
29 October 2010.  WT/CTE/17 
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  energy in the CTE since the Committee's inception,  under Paragraph 32 (i) second part, "Sectoral 
Analysis".7   
B. PARAGRAPH 32(III) (LABELLING FOR ENVIRONMENTAL PURPOSES ) 
10. Some discussions took place on eco-labelling schemes in 2010, in particular in the second 
half of the year.  At the February 2010 CTE meeting, the European Union suggested looking into the opportunities that eco-labelling schemes could creat e.  In this context, the United Nations 
Environment Programme (UNEP) briefed the Comm ittee on an implementation project they were 
undertaking to improve understandi ng and knowledge about labels, a nd opportunities and barriers to 
their diffusion.
8 
11. On 9 July 2010, the Chair sent a fax to delegati ons to invite both (i) those Members who have 
environment-related labelling schemes in different products and sectors to share their experience with 
the CTE, and (ii) other Members to share the experience of their producers in meeting the 
requirements of environment-related labelli ng schemes in order to access export markets.9  Following 
this request, Chile shared its national experience with environment-related labelling schemes at the 
29 September 2010 meeting.  The representative desc ribed public and private sector collaboration in 
developing labelling schemes for energy efficiency  and organic agriculture.  Both Singapore and 
Chinese Taipei shared their resp ective experiences with eco-labelling at the 9 November 2010 CTE 
meeting.  Singapore presented six different dom estic eco-labelling initiatives, four government 
administered, and two private voluntary initiatives.  Chinese Taipei described their experience with 
the government-administered Green Mark Program.   
12. In this context, Members debated a number of  issues, including the lack of harmonization 
across schemes;  the lack of scientif ic basis; the actual contribution of such schemes to environmental 
objectives;  and the relevance of the TBT Agre ement to CTE discussions of eco-labelling under 
Paragraph 32(iii). 
13. At the 29 September 2010 meeting, in order to provide information on the work done on 
environmental labelling in the WTO and elsewhere , the Secretariat presented two documents:  one 
reviewing specific trade concerns and notificati ons to the TBT Committee regarding environment-
related labelling schemes;10  and the other assessing work on eco-labelling underway in other 
international bodies, such as the Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO);  ISO;  OECD;  the 
United Nations Conference on Trade a nd Development (UNCTAD);  and UNEP.11 
C. OTHER PARAGRAPH 32 ITEMS  
14. Pursuant to Item 4 of the CTE Work Programme  regarding the transparency of trade measures 
for environmental purposes, the Secretariat prep ared two "Environmental Database" documents 
in 2010.  Both documents review  environment-related provisions or  measures that were notified under 
the WTO Agreements in the years 200712 and 200813. 
                                                      
7 "Discussions concerning the Energy Sector in the Committee on Trade and Environment", Note by 
the Secretariat, JOB/TE/ 10, 1 November 2010. 
8 "Report of the Meeting held on 17 February 2010", Note by the Secretariat, WT/CTE/M/49, 
7 April 2010, Annex 1. 
9 "Work Programme for the CTE in the Second Half of 2010", Fax from the Chairman, 9 July 2010. 
10 "Environmental Labelling-Related Specific Trade Concerns and Notifications in the 
TBT Committee", Note by the Secretariat, JOB/TE/7, 17 September 2010. 
11 "Eco-Labelling: Overview of Current Work in Vari ous International Fora", No te by the Secretariat, 
JOB/TE/9, 29 September 2010. 
12 "Environmental Database for 2007", Note by the Secretariat, WT/CTE/EDB/7, 17 May 2010. WT/CTE/17 
Page 4  
 
  II. PARAGRAPH 33 
We recognize the importance of technical assistance and capacity building in the 
field of trade and environment to d eveloping countries, in particular the 
least-developed among them.  We also en courage that expertise and experience be 
shared with Members wishing to perform envi ronmental reviews at the national level.   
15. At the 29 September meeting, the representativ e of the Dominican Republic underscored the 
importance of national coordination, and the need for technical assistance to developing countries on 
trade and environment.  At the 9 November meet ing, the representative of Angola requested that 
developed country Members continue to share information with African countries about their 
technical assistance activities.   
16. At the same meeting, the representative of CITES noted that during a September 2010 
meeting between the Secretary-General of CITES a nd the Director-General of the WTO, opportunities 
for further enhancing cooperation between the two organizations were discussed, as was the 
possibility of organizing a joint regional trad e and environment workshop requested by the Comisión 
Centroamericana de Ambiente y Desarrollo . 
17. At the 9 November 2010 CTE meeting, the WTO Secretariat introduced the technical 
assistance activities undertaken in 2010.   
III. OTHER BUSINESS 
A. I
NFORMATION EXCHANGE ON DEVELOPMENTS IN MEA S 
18. At the 29 September 2010 meeting, the repr esentative of the United Nations Framework 
Convention for Climate Change (UNFCCC) updated Memb ers on the state-of-play of climate change 
negotiations leading up to COP-16 in Cancún.  He outlined several areas of the negotiations where 
potential progress could be made, noting that trad e was unlikely to play a prominent role.   
19. At the 9 November 2010 meeting, the representative of the Convention on Biological 
Diversity (CBD) briefed Members on the negotiation process within the CBD, in particular the International Regime on Access and Benefit-Sharing, and highlighted the need for continued 
cooperation and mutual supportiveness between the CBD  and WTO.  Also at the 9 November 2010 
meeting, the representative of UNEP introdu ced several initiatives, including a joint UNEP, 
European Patent Office (EPO) and International Centre for Trade and Sustainable Development 
(ICTSD) project entitled "Patent and Clean Energy: Bridging the Gap Between Evidence and Policy", and the preparation of a joint high-level report of UNEP, UNCTAD and United Nations Department 
for Economic and Social Affairs (UNDESA) to the Rio+20 process, on the outcome of the 8-9 October 2010 Ad Hoc Expert Meeting on the Green Economy. 
B. O
THER ISSUES  
20. On 9 November 2010, the Secretariat organized a Workshop on the Linkages between Trade, 
Transport and the Environment .  Experts' presentations explored  the overarching linkages between 
trade, transport and environment, offering perspectives from both the maritime and aviation 
transportation industries.14  Members engaged with panellists on several points, inter alia , the 
contribution of different forms of  transport to global GHG emissions , the relationship between trade 
                                                                                                                                                                     
13 "Environmental Database for 2008", Note by th e Secretariat, WT/CTE/EDB/8, 4 October 2010. 
14 Presentations were given by representatives of  the OECD, World Bank, the International Maritime 
Organization (IMO), and the International Air Transport Association (IATA).  WT/CTE/17 
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  flows and transport costs, and the initiatives of the maritime and aviation tran sportation industries in 
mitigating their GHG emissions. 
21. At the 9 November 2010 CTE meeting, the repr esentative of Bolivia presented a statement 
informing the Committee of the outcome of the World People's Conference on Climate Change and 
the Rights of Mother Earth, held in Cochabamba, Bolivia in April 2010. 
 
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