Trade liberalisation, environmental regulation and the limits of reformism: the North American experience

Abstract

How effective has the North American Agreement on Environmental Cooperation been in strengthening the environmental laws and regulations of the NAFTA countries? The agreement was designed to address concerns that trade and investment liberalisation would contribute to a race to the bottom in environmental standards, regulatory chill, and inadequate enforcement of environmental laws. It is argued here that the reformist approach adopted in this regional agreement has been insufficient to offset the continuing pressure on environmental regulations and their enforcement exerted by regional economic integration and neoliberal globalisation.

Acknowledgements

Thanks to Joe Lyons for research assistance and to anonymous reviewers for helpful comments.

Notes

1. For example, in Ontario the provincial government's reaction to unfavourable Taking Stock reports was to question the validity of the exercise (Block 2003, pp. 32–33, Winfield 2003, TRAC 2004, pp. 17–18).

2. Stevis and Mumme (2000, pp. 36–37) argue that a convergence of environmental policies is also under way between the countries of North America and the European Union.