Trade and Environment in the EC and the WTO

Is a country allowed to prohibit the use of metal beverage cans if it hampers trade from other countries? Can a country impose gasoline quality standards that allow foreign refiners less possibilities to adapt to these standards than domestic refiners? Can it require all wood products sold on its market to carry a label indicating whether they have been sustainably produced or not? These are just some of the questions that have arisen in recent years over the interpretation of trade liberalisation commitments and environmental concerns. This study describes and compares the rules of the European Community and the World Trade Organisation on the liberalisation of trade in goods and measures taken by the members of these organisations for the protection of the environment. It analyses the interpretation of these rules by the European Court of Justice and WTO panels and the Appellate Body, placing them in their institutional context and comparing them. Attention is paid to how the rules relate to Community and international harmonisation, and to the status of trade-restrictive measures that are based on environmentally damaging production methods. This book thus provides useful insights for academics, policy-makers and those who influence policy alike.