BRIDGES Weekly Trade News Digest | Vol. 3, Number 37 | September 20, 1999
Governments met from 15-19 September in Vienna, Austria for informal consultations on how to restart negotiations toward a biosafety protocol. Talks for an international biosafety protocol to ensure the safe transfer, handling, use and disposal of living modified organisms (LMOs, often referred to as genetically modified organisms or GMOs) broke down in March 1999 in Cartagena, Colombia as negotiators clashed over trade in GMOs (see BRIDGES Weekly Trade News Digest Vol. 3, No. 8, 1 March 1999, http://www.ictsd.org/html/story1.01-03-99.htm)
An estimated 300 representatives from over 115 governments and 70 representatives from intergovernmental, non-governmental and industry organisations attended the Vienna Extraordinary Conference of the Parties (ExCOP) (the press was not invited to attend). The first two days were used for consultations within the negotiating groups that emerged from the Cartagena meeting, namely, the Miami Group (Argentina, Australia, Canada, Chile, Uruguay, and the U.S.), the European Union, the Central and Eastern European Countries, the Compromise Group (Japan, Mexico, Norway, South Korea and Switzerland), and the Like-Minded Group of Countries (which includes most of the developing countries).
During the final two days of discussions, negotiating groups addressed the issues of commodities, the relationship between the CBD and other international agreements, the scope of the agreement and the implementation of the so-called advance informed agreement procedure.
The commodities issue has taken on a new urgent dimension in light of recent developments around market resistance to GMOs, and the increasing likelihood that GMO and non-GMO commodities will require parallel supply chains. The Miami Group wants the protocol to apply only to GMOs that are deliberately released into the environment, e.g. seeds for planting. The EU and the Like-Minded Group support including all GMO products in the protocol, e.g. commodities.
Around the issues of commodities and of advanced informed consent (informing an importer of the presence of GMOs), delegates discussed the highly controversial issue of applying the precautionary principle to trade in GMOs. The Like-Minded Group and the EU stressed the principle's importance to GMO trade, and the Compromise Group acknowledged the right for a country to take a decision on GMO movement/imports based on legitimate concerns, such as the precautionary approach and risk assessments. The Miami Group expressed concern over the use of the phrase "legitimate concern," arguing instead that decisions should be based on risk assessments using sound science.
The Miami Group also noted that a biosafety protocol reference to the precautionary principle would be the first operational usage of the principle in an environmental agreement. The Miami Group stressed the need to ensure that such an inclusion would be consistent with other existing international environmental agreements. The Compromise Group noted the presence of the precautionary approach in the WTO Agreement on Sanitary and Phytosanitary Measures (SPS), but the Miami Group pointed out that the SPS is not an environmental agreement.
No major breakthroughs were reached at the five-day session. However, negotiating groups re-confirmed their political will to conclude a protocol and their support for concluding negotiations at the resumed session of the ExCOP. This session is scheduled for Montreal from 25 to 28 January 2000 and will be preceded by informal meetings from 20-23 January.
"Briefing note on the informal consultations regarding the Resumed Session of the Extraordinary Meeting of the Conference of the Parties for the Adoption of the Protocol on Biosafety to the Convention on Biological Diversity: 15-19 September 1999," EARTH NEGOTIATIONS BULLETIN (IISD), 20 September 1999; "Negotiators to seek resumption of biosafety talks," UNEP PRESS RELEASE, 15 September 1999; "Renewed efforts on biosafety protocol in September," PANAFRICAN NEWS AGENCY, 30 August 1999; "Informal meeting to seek process to rescue biosafety protocol," INSIDE US TRADE, 10 September 1999.BRIDGES Weekly Trade News Digest:
