bilaterals.org logo
bilaterals.org logo

environment

Liz Truss slams regulations in speech to US think tank backing environmental roll-back after Brexit
21-Sep-2018 Unearthed
Treasury minister was speaking on the same day the Cato Institute called for softer environmental rules and NHS competition.
Costa Rica wins case against investors’ beach front property
21-Sep-2018 TeleSur
ICSID tribunal rules Costa Rica was in its right to stop a tourist construction project on the Pacific coast that violated environmental laws.
The EU-Japan free trade deal: a threat to the fight against illegal timber?
20-Sep-2018 Fern
The deal’s impact on efforts to halt illegal logging and the tradein illegal timber remains an area of deep concern.
Rethinking international investment governance: Principles for the 21st century
19-Sep-2018 CCSI
The Columbia Center on Sustainable Investment is hosting a two-day conference on rethinking international investment governance, which seeks to elaborate principles for a progressive investment agenda.
Ecuador: Chevron’s victims vow to fight Hague court ruling
12-Sep-2018 TeleSur
Victims of Chevron-Texaco’s pollution of the Ecuadorean Amazon have vowed to fight to protect the ruling which has granted them compensation.
The Permanent Court of Arbitration in The Hague rules against Ecuador, favors Chevron
10-Sep-2018 TeleSur
Ecuador will be forced to pay economic reparations to the oil giant. The over 30,000 affected people in the Amazon haven’t received any compensation.
Letter of solidarity with the victims of Chevron
10-Sep-2018 CDES
The signatories of this letter wish to express their rejection of this decision and their support for the people of Ecuador and the organizations that have defended the communities affected by Chevron Texaco.
Eurogroup for Animals launches a study on biodiversity provisions in EU FTAs
7-Sep-2018 Eurogroup for Animals
Trade and Sustainable Development provisions in EU FTAs remain aspirational and there is no clear trend of improvement.
Tourist trap: Is tourism’s explosive growth hurting countries?
20-Aug-2018 IISD
Foreign investors in tourism have a long and successful history of using investor–state dispute settlement (ISDS) under investment treaties.
Why the US and EU trade models are both bad for people and the planet
27-Jul-2018 Devex
If the US and the EU follow through with their commitments, the new trade relationship would mean more fracking in the US and an attack on European standards for genetically modified organisms, chemicals and other sensitive issues.
RCEP: India must uphold peoples’ rights and welfare
11-Jul-2018 APRN
Joining the RCEP would definitely have economic, social and environmental costs for India. Threats to the livelihoods of millions of farmers and workers due to cheaper imports are real and present danger.
Sustainable trade? Testing the EU-Indonesia free trade agreement
10-Jul-2018 Friends of the Earth Europe
The agreement scores only 4.5 out of 20 points on a sustainability check of the draft texts - a clear fail.
China Belt and Road scheme brings warnings from scientists and environmentalists
20-Jun-2018 Radio Free Asia
Scientists and environmentalists are warning that China’s vast “Silk Road” global infrastructure initiative could cause permanent environmental damage unless it’s carefully handled.
Mercosur: Don’t sacrifice our food standards and tropical forests for trade
8-Jun-2018 Euractiv
The trade agreement currently being negotiated by the EU and Mercosur will increase deforestation and accelerate the demise of European farmers by subjecting them to unfair competition.
A globalisation for people, not business
5-Jun-2018 Social Europe
Globalisation is in crisis because of its almost totalitarian outreach to all areas of everyday life. People feel a loss of control, because their way of life is perceived as subject to trade requests solely for the benefit of globally acting firms.
Legitimising an unsustainable approach to trade
28-May-2018 Power Shift
Simply throwing labour (or the environment, or sustainable development) objectives into the FTA mix adds a facade of legitimacy to the process of “deep integration” of neoliberal economic polices which are inherently antagonistic to these objectives.
NAFTA talks have ignored environmental concerns
17-May-2018 Sierra Club
NAFTA 2.0 could increase pollution that threatens our communities.
Canada loses bid to overturn NAFTA ruling on rebuffed N.S. quarry
3-May-2018 CBC
New Jersey company behind quarry proposal in Digby Neck claims damages of $443M US in lost profits.
Setting course for sustainable trade – a new trade agenda that serves people and the environment
11-Apr-2018 Friends of the Earth Europe
We urgently need a new trade regime which can help address global challenges and tackle problems like accelerating climate change, a broken agricultural model and loss of trust in democratic processes.
EU wants legal assurance Britain won’t lower environmental standards after Brexit
11-Apr-2018 Reuters
The European Union wants Britain to promise not to lower its environmental protection standards after it leaves the EU, the EU’s chief Brexit negotiator Michel Barnier said.