The Application Of Precautionary Principle In Wto

Precautionary principle originated in the field of environmental law, and it has been invoked by many international conventions, such as the "Convention on Biological Diversity", "The Stockholm Declaration", "Rio Declaration", "Montreal Protocol on Substances that Deplete the Ozone Layer", "United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change".In addition some classic international case also revolve around the principle. And the precautionary principle has been proved playing an important role in environmental protection.With the development of international economic, in 90-20th century, the precautionary principle began to penetrate in international trade. At present, a part of the international legal documents in WTO has involved in the principle, for example "the SPS Agreement", "1994GATT", "the TBT Agreement" and "Cartagena Protocol on Biosafety". And a series of typical cases have followed, such as the case of beef hormones, genetically modified food cases, asbestos cases, and "shrimp and sea turtles". Though all of these cases are related to the precautionary principle, the Appellate Body has not given a clear answer to the status and application conditions of the principle in light of its specificity.View of the importance of precautionary principle in international trade, we need to delve into its application in WTO legal system. By examining the different attitudes of European Union, the United States, Canada and other countries, combined with the related provisions and cases, we will make specific analysis of the precautionary principle position in the WTO framework and its rationality and feasibility. Then we are going to put forward the specific application of this principle, including establishing explicit standard, establishing scientific and reasonable risk-assessment mechanism, effectively dealing with multilateral environmental agreements and trade restrictions relations to give a better scope to its role in international trade field.