A Study On The Precautionary Principle In The SPS Agreement

Precautionary principle, origins from Germany environment law, is one of the important principles in international environment law. While the rapid development of international trade, a tendency is showing that the precautionary principle is also infiltrating into WTO law.《Agreement on the Application of Sanitary and Phytosanitary Measures》is the product of the Uruguay Round negotiations for regulating sanitary and phytosanitary measures in international trade and avoiding trade barriers. Under the WTO legal framework, the precautionary principle is mainly reflected in Article 5.7 of the SPS Agreement, which entitles Member States to take provisional measures when the scientific evidence is not sufficient in order to protect the environment and to keep human, animal and plant healthy. With the arising attention to environment and health protection, study of the precautionary principle in SPS Agreement is of great significance.However, neither the marco issue like international legal status of the precautionary principle or the micro issue like how precautionary principle applies in the SPS Agreement has been officially answered. WTO related cases, while providing some clues to that answer, the discussion never cease. Through the fog of complicated controversy, it is the purpose of this paper to dig up how to correctly understand the precautionary principle and to seek for what attitudes and practices China should uphold.This paper is divided into four chapters.The first chapter describes the history of precautionary principle and its penetration trend towards WTO law. On the basis of key elements of precautionary principle, this chapter also analyses of the system of precautionary principle in the SPS Agreement.The second chapter introduces the WTO cases concerning the precautionary principle and explores the connection between precautionary principle and international trade. It also analyses the present application of the principles and related controversies.The third chapter analyses the current controversies concerning precautionary principle in the SPS Agreement. While clarifying the main clue of these controversies, the paper points out its own position.The fourth chapter reveals the inspiration of the precautionary principle in the SPS Agreement and puts forward position which China, as a developing country, supposed to uphold facing precautionary principle.