Publisher's Synopsis
The purpose of this book is to conduct a legal reasoning on eco-taxes in the WTO, as a way to find solutions-short-term and long-term ones-for environmental problems, especially focusing on those from pollution-causing processes and production methods (PPMs). More fundamentally, it can contribute to a potential transformation of the WTO into a true regime for "sustainable development," which is stipulated as an objective of the WTO in the Preamble to the Marrakesh Agreement Establishing the World Trade Organization (WTO Agreement). The term "sustainable development" means "development that meets the needs of the present without compromising the ability of future generations to meet their own needs." In other words, this concept may be simply understood as a compromise or sustainability between economic development and environmental protection, or between free trade and the environment. Throughout this book, all the legal analysis and reasoning lead to a conclusion that a 'relevant and considerate' imposition of eco-taxes, especially those to address pollution-causing PPMs, can contribute to the achievement of sustainable development and environmental protection under the 'current' WTO system. The meaning of being 'relevant and considerate' will be elaborated through the analysis of the relevant provisions of the WTO Agreements and the Panel and Appellate Body reports concerned. Also, the meaning of being 'current' will be clarified by categorizing the solutions into short-term and long-term ones.
