More than ten delegations shared their experience in tackling IUU fishing. For instance, Ecuador underscored the importance of the fisheries sector and noted that their policies followed regional and international strategies. The United States said it was pursuing commitments to addressing the issue through regional trade agreements and WTO negotiations. The US also announced plans to finalize rules for a traceability programme by August 2016 which will affect seafood species identified to be at risk of IUU fishing or seafood fraud.

Mexico likewise presented its programmes such as vessel registration, satellite monitoring, and on-board observation and noted that regional and multilateral cooperation is the best way to reinforce efforts against IUU fishing. The European Union emphasized the importance of traceability in the whole supply chain while at the same time ensuring transparency, fairness, and assistance for developing countries' compliance. Philippines, Sri Lanka, Republic of Korea, Norway, Chinese Taipei, New Zealand, Papua New Guinea and Australia also shared some national experience with the Committee.

Responding to the presentations, several delegations urged members to ensure alignment to international commitments when implementing domestic strategies. The Philippines, for instance, urged the US to consider the interests of developing countries' exporters as well as difficulties posed by tracing transhipment procedures which puts imports at a disadvantage to local produce. Haiti, speaking on behalf of the Least Developed Countries (LDC) Group, called for multilateral commitments rather than domestic initiatives which they said could create barriers to trade. New Zealand emphasized that anti-IUU fishing measures should be consistent with WTO commitments and adhere to the principle of national treatment.

 

Sustainable hydropower and organic and climate-resilient agriculture

Hydropower was also discussed in the meeting, with Canada and a representative from the International Hydropower Association presenting a tool for assessing the sustainability of hydropower plants or projects. Canada emphasized the importance of preventing barriers to the trade of hydropower technologies and inputs. Several delegations showed interest in the subject and shared some of their own experiences with sustainable hydropower exploitation, while others indicated the need to include the costs of such sustainability assessments in the financial viability of the projects and the special needs of developing countries.

Representatives from three observer organizations gave presentations on organic agriculture. The representative from the United Nations Conference on Trade and Development (UNCTAD) spoke on the benefits of promoting organic agriculture in developing countries as it could support rural communities while also improving environmental sustainability. Similarly, the representative from the United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP) took the floor to share some of their national projects and highlighted the commercial opportunities and benefits of organic farming in South Africa. The representative from the International Trade Centre (ITC) meanwhile shared information on initiatives for helping agricultural exporters in developing countries to meet carbon standards and increase their resilience to climate change.

 

Environmental Goods Agreement negotiations

Australia, the chair of the negotiations for the plurilateral Environmental Goods Agreement (EGA), gave an update on the ninth and latest round of talks held in September. A full list of products nominated for tariff elimination was completed in April, Australia said, noting that this list comprised roughly 650 tariff lines. Australia said there is no fixed timetable for the conclusion of talks although negotiating members recognize that the United Nations Climate Change Conference and the WTO Ministerial Conference are looming in November and December, respectively. Australia said it remains optimistic that a substantive outcome is within reach. Two more negotiating rounds are planned for end-October and end-November Australia said.

 

Other issues

Briefings by observer organizations

A representative from the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC) briefed members on the status of climate change negotiations. The representative said a streamlined text was published on Monday and will be the basis of negotiations in Paris in December. A representative from the United Nations Department of Economic and Social Affairs (UNDESA), meanwhile, provided information on the post-2015 development agenda as adopted at the UN Summit in New York last month.

WTO Secretariat update

The Secretariat introduced the updated "Matrix on Trade-related Measures Pursuant to Selected Multilateral Environmental Agreements": WT/CTE/W/160/Rev.7, TN/TE/S5-R5