The Brickell Report

Recommendations from the Hemispheric Dialogue on Environmentally Sound Trade Expansion
 
 

  • Strengthen national systems for
    o certification,
    o standardization,
    o accreditation, and
    o quality management

particularly through a regional and/or subregional approach. On the international level, Latin American and Caribbean (LAC) states and companies should use market-based incentives to promote clean technology mechanisms, participate in the formulation of ISO 14000, and promote international lab accreditation (e.g., through the International Accreditation Forum).

  • Promote development and use of international standards dealing with production and process methods (PPMs).
     

  • Create an Environmental Cooperation Mechanism to inform the FTAA negotiation process and the public on trade-related environmental issues. Such a mechanism should work on an ad hoc basis and in close cooperation with the Tripartite Committee (IDB, OAS, and ECLAC). This mechanism would facilitate

    • information exchange,

    • cooperative action,

    • study, and

    • dialogue among experts and relevant stakeholders on environmental concerns and sustainability.

This environmental cooperation mechanism should be multilateral, regional, and open to government as well as civil society participants from the trade, environment, and other sectors and should be expert-focused. Participating parties should determine the scope of work of the mechanism, taking into account the ongoing work and experiences of the NAFTA Commission on Environmental Cooperation, the MERCOSUR and CCAD, and others as appropriate. The mechanism could be made permanent after the final FTAA agreement.

This mechanism would help to identify specific trade and environment topics for possible consideration by the FTAA negotiating groups, while promoting transparency and information access in the FTAA negotiations and in national policy formulation.

The FTAA is a key element of a broader Summit of the Americas agenda, which includes environmental protection and sustainable development. This environmental cooperation mechanism in the FTAA should also help identify how other Summit initiatives and the FTAA can be mutually supportive.

  • Provide technical assistance for government negotiators in trade and those who will implement governmental trade policies aimed at increasing their awareness of environmental sustainability issues.
     

  • Promote awareness, through dialogue, research, and education, within the environment and trade communities and consumer associations of the positive as well as negative links between trade and environment. This should be done through existing institutions, especially at the national level, and with a focus on information access. Empirical data on these linkages will provide LAC countries with the information needed to formulate national policies and to negotiate in multilateral and bilateral agreements. NGOs, governments, and private industry need to promote success stories (showing both positive environmental impacts of free trade and positive trade impacts of environmental sustainability) - e.g., Forest Stewardship Council and environmental benefits of removing subsidies to agriculture, fishing, and forestry sectors.
     

  • Facilitate the dissemination of "green credit" and equity by banks and multilateral organizations. Governments should promote incentives such as green tax exemptions to increase environmental sustainability of business in Latin America and the Caribbean, especially among the small- and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) that make up a large majority of the business sector in this region. Market-based incentives to promote clean technology mechanisms for SMEs should also be promoted.
     

  • Use the subregional forums (e.g., MERCOSUR, Andean Group, and CARICOM), so that the LAC states can take advantage of settings more conducive to the formulation of a trade and environment agenda appropriate to their regional interests.
     

  • Implement national sustainability reviews of proposed policies. These reviews can be carried out jointly in the region and should involve civil society in the review process.
     

  • Create and strengthen mechanisms at the subregional and international levels for transparency of national environmental standards.
     

  • Build trust between the trade community and environmental groups by encouraging moderate, "responsible" NGOs to make an effort to voice a pro-sustainable trade opinion, particularly at the national level.
     

  • Address the fear of "green protectionism" and unilateralism by

    • eliminating sanctions as a threat;

    • trust building;

    • creating dispute resolution mechanisms that integrate environmental expertise;

    • and using Multilateral Environmental Agreements (MEAs) as a first recourse, and making efforts to better reconcile existing as well as future MEAs and international trade law.

  • Maximize benefits to LAC governments and businesses of projecting themselves as suppliers of environmental services.
     

  • Address the special needs and concerns of small economies with respect to trade expansion.

  
March 2000

For more information, please contact Robin Rosenberg at the North-South Center.
Tel.: (305) 284-8957; Fax: (305) 284-6370; E-Mail: [email protected]