EU Appeals WTO Ruling in Retreaded Tyre Dispute with Brazil; NGOs Protest	The EU has formally appealed a WTO ruling against Brazil's import restrictions on retreaded tyres, taking the unusual step of challenging a decision in which it was nominally victorious. Several environment and development NGOs have expressed their concern over this move, asking the EU to withdraw the appeal. more
UN Deserts Meeting Looks to the Future	Participants at a major international meeting on desertification are staking out a plan for efforts to combat the problem over the course of the next ten year. Taking place in Madrid from 3-14 September, the eighth session of the Conference of the Parties (COP-8) to the UN Convention to Combat Desertification (UNCCD) is focusing on the strategic plan, which aims to address some of the Convention's key challenges and create a new, revitalised common ground for all UNCCD stakeholders based on concrete actions to combat desertification. more
GMO Update: Brazil, India Pave Way for New Crops; Peru Bans Biotech Potatoes	Brazil and India have recently taken measures that signal a growing acceptance of new genetically modified (GM) crops -- although these measures also face fierce criticism. In Brazil, two GM corn varieties are progressing through the regulatory approval progress, and a Brazilian company, EMBRAPA, has developed the country's first commercial biotech soybean in collaboration with BASF, a multinational company. Meanwhile, the Indian government is allowing large-scale field trials of GM eggplant. In contrast, the regional government of Cusco in Peru -- the area potatoes originate from -- decided in late July to ban modified varieties of potatoes. A new public order forbids the sale, cultivation, use and transport of biotech potatoes as well as other food crops native to the region. more

In Brief

EU Set to Keep Extra Duties on Energy-Saving Light Bulbs from China Seal Hunt Lands at WTO EU Food Safety Agency: GM Feed Does Not Affect Meat, Eggs, Dairy Iceland Finds No Market for Whale Meat

Events    &   Resources
Events	3-14 September, Madrid, Spain: EIGHTH SESSION OF THE CONFERENCE OF THE PARTIES TO THE UN CONVENTION TO COMBAT DESERTIFICATON (COP-8). COP-8 of the CCD will consider the following agenda items: programme and budget for the biennium 2008-2009; review of the implementation of the Convention; review of the report of the Committee on Science and Technology; review of activities for promotion of relationships with other relevant organizations; follow-up to the World Summit on Sustainable Development; Regional Coordination Units; and review of the 2006 International Year of Deserts and Desertification activities. internet: http://www.unccd.int/p
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Resources	THE WTO AND ENERGY: WTO RULES AND AGREEMENTS OF RELEVANCE TO THE ENERGY SECTOR. By Yulia Selivanova (ICTSD Trade and Sustainable Energy Series, August 2007). This paper puts energy in the context of international trade and provides some clarity as to how international trade rules apply to this sector. First, the paper gives an overview of the energy supply and demand market and the international framework of energy regulation. It goes on to examine the WTO rules and agreements that relate to energy trade; the characteristics of energy resources and products that differentiate them from other goods; the existing energy trade processes that could constitute barriers according to GATT-WTO rules; and issues related to energy security, energy investment, and trade in energy services. To conclude, the paper discusses how the interests of both energy-importing and energy-exporting states can be addressed by the WTO. The report is available at http://www.trade-environment.org/output/ictsd/resource/The%20WTO%20and%20Energy.pdf .
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ISSN 1682-0843