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WORLD TRADE ORGANIZATION WANTS FREE TRADE AGREEMENT FOR FORESTS Liberalization Plan Must be Stopped Before WTO's November Ministerial This year, the World Trade Organization (WTO) is descending upon Seattle to negotiate a global trade agreement for forests. The agreement will surely increase logging and consumption around the globe -- unless the environmental community brings it to a halt. THE AGREEMENT: The agreement will eliminate tariffs on wood products, making all kinds of forest products cheaper and easier to buy. Industry representatives are also expected to introduce non-tariff measures (NTMs) into the negotiations. NTMs include controls on how timber is produced and traded, many of which are meant to safeguard forests. THE WTO: The World Trade Organization is a global trade body which makes legally binding agreements and mediates disputes over trade barriers. It will likely force liberalization on all countries including Japan, one of the world's largest consumers of forest products. The WTO has failed to accommodate the demands of citizen groups despite years of groups' organized and widespread efforts. EFFECTS ON FORESTS: Liberalization of the wood product trade will reduce costs, increase consumption, dilute forest management standards, and dismantle environmental regulations. The end result of this free trade agreement will be increased pressure on forest ecosystems. WHAT ACTIVISTS CAN DO: Forest activists must organize now to demand that trade policy-makers halt the forest trade plan. The environmental community should call for the WTO to postpone all new agreements until they have assessed the impacts of current agreements. Activists should also pressure their governments to engage citizen groups in trade negotiations on equal standing with industry groups and to conduct formal environmental impact assessment before discussing liberalization. WHO TO CONTACT: American Lands, International Forum on Globalization and Pacific Environment and Resources Center will help to mount a large campaign to oppose forest trade liberalization before the November 1999 WTO Ministerial in Seattle. We will help forest activists strategize ways to stop the forest trade plan, reform international trade policies, and focus the attention of the press and public on the crisis in Pacific Northwest's forests. A. Paige Fischer American Lands International Forum on Globalization Up to Top HOME | Email Signup | About Us | Contact Us | Terms of Use | © 2008 Sierra Club |
