Negotiations on Environmental Goods with WTO and Sustainable Development

Abstract

Doha Round of negotiations on environmental goods and services are continuing without resulting in any gainful output. The basic challenge of negotiations on environment is emerged on definitional approach of environmental goods because neither internationally agreed definition of Environmental Goods (EGs) nor any agreed criteria for their classification is specified. However, suggested definitions have varied between limited primarily to “pollution prevention activities” to “extending beyond simple end-use criteria”. The paper attempted to examine various definitions of environmental goods developed from time to time besides estimating time series analysis of export and import data. The paper is also focused on environmental goods in which India has comparative advantage and elaborates the potential for negotiations on environmental goods in India.