ABSTRACT
This chapter addresses the trade-environment issue in relation to the World Trade Organization (WTO) dispute settlement system. It provides an overview of dispute settlement process itself. The chapter makes some recommendations and speculates on what the future of the trade–environment interface in the WTO may bring. The WTO mechanism set out in the Settlement of Disputes (DSU), like General Agreement on Tariffs and Trade (GATT) dispute settlement practice, is still based on the principle of mutually acceptable resolution of disputes. The Appellate Body's approach to the Sanitary and Phytosanitary Measures (SPS) Agreement has differed from its approach to the GATT. Hope also lies in the more liberal attitude of the Appellate Body to the Members' use of the SPS Agreement and the potential for Members to attach conditions to their liberalizations in trade in services. The Appellate Body's expression of environment's legitimacy is thus a refreshing surprise and may signal the coming of a truly 'greener' WTO.
