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Agreement Document symbol Notifying Member Year Harmonized types of environment-related objectives Harmonized types of measures Harmonized types of sectors subject to the measure Measure description See more information
Technical Barriers to Trade G/TBT/N/USA/1723 United States of America 2021 Other environmental risks mitigation Technical regulation or specifications Manufacturing
Use of Polystyrene: Proposed rule - Prohibits…
Use of Polystyrene: Proposed rule - Prohibits school district use of polystyrene foam in the service of any meal. The proposed new rules administer this policy and includes defined terms used throughout, statement of the prohibited use of polystyrene, what is an allowable exemption and waiver, and what the Department can do if it finds a school district in violation of the rules.
Environment related objective
To prohibit the use of polystyrene foam in the service of meals in schools and protect health and environment
Measure description Coverage of the measure
Use of Polystyrene: Proposed rule - Prohibits school district use of polystyrene foam in the service of any meal. The proposed new rules administer this policy and includes defined terms used throughout, statement of the prohibited use of polystyrene, what is an allowable exemption and waiver, and what the Department can do if it finds a school district in violation of the rules.
Polystyrene foam
Type of measure
Technical regulation
ICS - HS Code
01.020
67.250
83.140
Subsidy amount Implementation period
Entry into force: To be determined
Keywords
Environment
Plastic
Technical Barriers to Trade G/TBT/N/USA/1774 United States of America 2021
Soil management and conservation, Waste…
Soil management and conservation, Waste management and recycling
 Technical regulation or specifications Other
Potential Future Regulation Addressing Pyrolysis…
Potential Future Regulation Addressing Pyrolysis and Gasification Units: Advance notice of proposed rulemaking - The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) is soliciting information and requesting comments to assist in the potential development of regulations for pyrolysis and gasification units that are used to convert solid or semi-solid feedstocks, including solid waste (e.g., municipal solid waste, commercial and industrial waste, hospital/medical/infectious waste, sewage sludge, other solid waste), biomass, plastics, tires, and organic contaminants in soils and oily sludges to useful products such as energy, fuels and chemical commodities. Pyrolysis and gasification are often described as heat induced thermal decomposition processes. Through recent requests for applicability determinations, it appears that pyrolysis and gasification processes are more widely being used to convert waste into useful products or energy.
Environment related objective
To propose regulations for pyrolysis and gasification units that are used to convert solid or semi-solid feedstocks, including solid waste (e.g., municipal solid waste, commercial and industrial waste, hospital/medical/infectious waste, sewage sludge, other solid waste), biomass, plastics, tires, and organic contaminants in soils and oily sludges to useful products such as energy, fuels and chemical commodities.
Measure description Coverage of the measure
Potential Future Regulation Addressing Pyrolysis and Gasification Units: Advance notice of proposed rulemaking - The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) is soliciting information and requesting comments to assist in the potential development of regulations for pyrolysis and gasification units that are used to convert solid or semi-solid feedstocks, including solid waste (e.g., municipal solid waste, commercial and industrial waste, hospital/medical/infectious waste, sewage sludge, other solid waste), biomass, plastics, tires, and organic contaminants in soils and oily sludges to useful products such as energy, fuels and chemical commodities. Pyrolysis and gasification are often described as heat induced thermal decomposition processes. Through recent requests for applicability determinations, it appears that pyrolysis and gasification processes are more widely being used to convert waste into useful products or energy.
Pyrolysis and gasification units
Type of measure
Technical regulation
ICS - HS Code
13.030
97.100
Subsidy amount Implementation period
Entry into force: To be determined
Keywords
Bio
Energy
Environment
Organic
Plastic
Soil
Waste
Technical Barriers to Trade G/TBT/N/USA/1781 United States of America 2021 Waste management and recycling
Ban/Prohibition, Technical regulation or…
Ban/Prohibition, Technical regulation or specifications
 Manufacturing
Expanded Polystyrene Foam Container: Proposed…
Expanded Polystyrene Foam Container: Proposed Rule Making, Hearing Scheduled - Implementation of the expanded polystyrene foam container and loose fill packaging ban in Environmental Conservation Law, art. 27, Title 30.
Environment related objective
To regulate the usage of polystyrene foam containers under the Environmental Conservation Law
Measure description Coverage of the measure
Expanded Polystyrene Foam Container: Proposed Rule Making, Hearing Scheduled - Implementation of the expanded polystyrene foam container and loose fill packaging ban in Environmental Conservation Law, art. 27, Title 30.
Polystyrene foam container
Type of measure
Technical regulation; Ban
ICS - HS Code
13.020
55.040
83.140.99
Subsidy amount Implementation period
Entry into force: To be determined
Keywords
Conservation
Environment
Plastic
Technical Barriers to Trade G/TBT/N/USA/1810 United States of America 2021 Waste management and recycling Technical regulation or specifications Manufacturing
Postconsumer Recycled Content For Plastic…
Postconsumer Recycled Content For Plastic Containers: This rule making establishes a postconsumer recycled (PCR) content program for covered products. This also prepares an annual workload analysis identifying agency cost to be incurred to implement, administer and enforce the law, and offer the analysis for public comment. Interested parties can participate in the decision to adopt the new rule and formulation of the proposed rule before publication and can stay informed about the rule making and public involvement opportunities by periodically visiting the Department of Ecology's Webpage on the 2021 plastics law (...)
Environment related objective
To establish a postconsumer recycled (PCR) content program for covered products
Measure description Coverage of the measure
Postconsumer Recycled Content For Plastic Containers: This rule making establishes a postconsumer recycled (PCR) content program for covered products. This also prepares an annual workload analysis identifying agency cost to be incurred to implement, administer and enforce the law, and offer the analysis for public comment. Interested parties can participate in the decision to adopt the new rule and formulation of the proposed rule before publication and can stay informed about the rule making and public involvement opportunities by periodically visiting the Department of Ecology's Webpage on the 2021 plastics law (...)
Postconsumer recycled (PCR) content for plastic containers
Type of measure
Technical regulation
ICS - HS Code
13.020
83.080
83.140
Subsidy amount Implementation period
Entry into force: To be determined
Keywords
Environment
Plastic
Recycle
Waste
Subsidies and Countervailing Measures G/SCM/N/372/AUS Australia 2021 Waste management and recycling Tax concessions Other
Queensland: Waste levy exemptions and discounts:…
Queensland: Waste levy exemptions and discounts: The Waste levy imposes a levy on waste delivered to a levyable waste disposal site; certain waste is exempt from the levy or levied at a discounted rate.
Relevant discounts include the following prescribed recycling activities:
e-waste recycling to separate e-waste into clean streams of individual components and materials;
re-purposing e-waste for re-use;
paper and cardboard recycling to produce new paper and cardboard products;
plastic recycling using an extrusion process or a washing and flaking process to produce components for use in new products;
plastic recycling of soft plastics to produce components for use in new products;
tyre recycling to produce rubber output to a particular specification and particle size;
reclaimed timber recycling or sorting for re-use;
reclaimed timber recycling or sorting for processing for production of new timber products.

Relevant exemptions include:
 earth contaminated with a hazardous contaminant from land recorded in the environmental management register or contaminated land register; and
 waste to be used at a levyable waste disposal site for a purpose necessary for the operation of the site, including, for example, building infrastructure, temporary or daily covering, progressive capping, batter construction, final capping, profiling and site rehabilitation.
Environment related objective
To impose a levy on waste delivered to a waste disposal site and offer discounts and encourage recycling activities
Measure description Coverage of the measure
Queensland: Waste levy exemptions and discounts: The Waste levy imposes a levy on waste delivered to a levyable waste disposal site; certain waste is exempt from the levy or levied at a discounted rate.
Relevant discounts include the following prescribed recycling activities:
e-waste recycling to separate e-waste into clean streams of individual components and materials;
re-purposing e-waste for re-use;
paper and cardboard recycling to produce new paper and cardboard products;
plastic recycling using an extrusion process or a washing and flaking process to produce components for use in new products;
plastic recycling of soft plastics to produce components for use in new products;
tyre recycling to produce rubber output to a particular specification and particle size;
reclaimed timber recycling or sorting for re-use;
reclaimed timber recycling or sorting for processing for production of new timber products.

Relevant exemptions include:
 earth contaminated with a hazardous contaminant from land recorded in the environmental management register or contaminated land register; and
 waste to be used at a levyable waste disposal site for a purpose necessary for the operation of the site, including, for example, building infrastructure, temporary or daily covering, progressive capping, batter construction, final capping, profiling and site rehabilitation.
landfill operators, consultants working for businesses, developer companies, recycling businesses, local councils, businesses in the waste and recycling industry.
Type of measure
Exemptions, discounts
 ICS - HS Code
Subsidy amount Implementation period
The statutory provisions for exemptions and discounts have no end-date, except for the following:
 for the Cairns Bedminster facility, approval ends on 30 June 2026;
 for material recovery facilities and financial hardship, approvals end on 30 June 2022.
Keywords
Environment
Plastic
Recycle
Waste
Subsidies and Countervailing Measures G/SCM/N/372/CHN China 2021
Biodiversity and ecosystem, Natural resources…
Biodiversity and ecosystem, Natural resources conservation, Sustainable agriculture management, Waste management and recycling
 Grants and direct payments Agriculture
Subsidy fund for agricultural resources and…
Subsidy fund for agricultural resources and ecological protection
Environment related objective
To be used for agricultural resources conservation, ecological protection and compensation of interest, etc.
Measure description Coverage of the measure
Subsidy fund for agricultural resources and ecological protection
1) Expenditure on the protection of farmland resources, mainly used to support the protection of black soil in northeastern China, conservative tillage, farmland rotation fallow and other aspects of agricultural structural adjustment, and farmland protection and quality improvement;
2) Pilots in banning fishing in the key waters of the Yangtze River Basin;
3) Reward and subsidy for grassland protection and utilization, mainly used to subsidize and reward the farmers and herdsmen who give up grazing on grassland and maintain the livestock balance of grassland according to relevant regulations;
4) Expenditure on resource utilization of agricultural wastes, mainly used for comprehensive treatment of livestock and poultry manures, comprehensive utilization of crop straws and the recycling of waste plastic films.
Type of measure
Financial appropriations
 ICS - HS Code
Subsidy amount Implementation period
2011 to present
Keywords
Conservation
Eco
Natural resources
Plastic
Recycle
Waste
Sanitary and Phytosanitary Measures G/SPS/N/EU/524 European Union 2021 Waste management and recycling Technical regulation or specifications Manufacturing
Draft Commission Regulation on recycled plastic…
Draft Commission Regulation on recycled plastic materials and articles intended to come into contact with foods, and repealing Regulation (EC) No 282/2008:
The regulation concerns the placing on the market of plastic materials and articles with recycled/secondary plastic content intended for use in contact with food. It sets out rules for the manufacture thereof, suitable recycling technologies, recycling processes, recycling installations, plastic waste, collection and sorting of plastic input and the decontamination thereof, and the use of the plastic output, quality control, registration of business operators and enforcement, with the purpose to ensure that the recycled content in the final plastic materials and articles intended for contact with food do not cause harm to the consumers of those foods, or change their quality or organoleptic properties. The Regulation repeals Regulation (EC) No 282/2008, which it will replace.
Environment related objective
To set rules for manufacture of plastic products, recycling processes and plastic waste collection
Measure description Coverage of the measure
Draft Commission Regulation on recycled plastic materials and articles intended to come into contact with foods, and repealing Regulation (EC) No 282/2008:
The regulation concerns the placing on the market of plastic materials and articles with recycled/secondary plastic content intended for use in contact with food. It sets out rules for the manufacture thereof, suitable recycling technologies, recycling processes, recycling installations, plastic waste, collection and sorting of plastic input and the decontamination thereof, and the use of the plastic output, quality control, registration of business operators and enforcement, with the purpose to ensure that the recycled content in the final plastic materials and articles intended for contact with food do not cause harm to the consumers of those foods, or change their quality or organoleptic properties. The Regulation repeals Regulation (EC) No 282/2008, which it will replace.
Plastic articles and materials
Type of measure
Technical regulation
 ICS - HS Code
39
Subsidy amount Implementation period
Entry into force: This Regulation shall enter into force on the twentieth day following its publication in the Official Journal of the European Union
Keywords
Plastic
Recycle
Waste
Sanitary and Phytosanitary Measures G/SPS/N/KOR/720 Korea, Republic of 2021 Waste management and recycling Technical regulation or specifications Manufacturing
Proposed amendments to the Standards and…
Proposed amendments to the Standards and Specifications for Food Utensils, Containers and Packages:
1) The standards for using recycled synthetic resins are revised;
2) The standards for active and intelligent packaging are added;
3) The standards and specifications for synthetic resins are rearranged;
4) The specifications for individual materials are rearranged into a table form;
5) The standards and specifications of polyketone synthetic resin are newly established;
6) The test methods and terminology are revised.
Environment related objective
To set standards for using recycled synthetic resins
Measure description Coverage of the measure
Proposed amendments to the Standards and Specifications for Food Utensils, Containers and Packages:
1) The standards for using recycled synthetic resins are revised;
2) The standards for active and intelligent packaging are added;
3) The standards and specifications for synthetic resins are rearranged;
4) The specifications for individual materials are rearranged into a table form;
5) The standards and specifications of polyketone synthetic resin are newly established;
6) The test methods and terminology are revised.
Food utensils, containers and packages
Type of measure
Technical regulation
 ICS - HS Code
Subsidy amount Implementation period
Entry into force: To be determined.
Keywords
Plastic
Recycle
Import Licensing Procedures G/LIC/N/3/AUS/14 Australia 2021
Chemical, toxic and hazardous substances…
Chemical, toxic and hazardous substances management, MEAs implementation and compliance
 Import licences Chemicals, Manufacturing
17. Industrial Chemicals: Australian Industrial…
17. Industrial Chemicals: Australian Industrial Chemicals Introduction Scheme (AICIS), established under the Industrial Chemicals Act 2019 (IC Act). AICIS aids in the protection of the Australian people and the environment through the regulation of the introduction of industrial chemicals, the assessment and evaluation of the introduction and use of certain industrial chemicals and providing information and recommendations to promote their safe use.These chemicals are considered to be highly toxic and virtually indestructible and a considerable danger to the environment. PCB waste may also be imported under the Hazardous Waste (Regulations of Exports and Imports) Act 1989, provided all the requirements of that Act have been met.
Environment related objective
To comply with the Rotterdam Convention promoting shared responsibility and cooperative efforts among Parties in the international trade of certain hazardous chemicals in order to protect human health and the environment from potential harm; and To ensure that no new chemicals are introduced into Australia unless they have been assessed for risks to public health, occupational health and safety and the environment
Measure description Coverage of the measure
17. Industrial Chemicals: Australian Industrial Chemicals Introduction Scheme (AICIS), established under the Industrial Chemicals Act 2019 (IC Act). AICIS aids in the protection of the Australian people and the environment through the regulation of the introduction of industrial chemicals, the assessment and evaluation of the introduction and use of certain industrial chemicals and providing information and recommendations to promote their safe use.These chemicals are considered to be highly toxic and virtually indestructible and a considerable danger to the environment. PCB waste may also be imported under the Hazardous Waste (Regulations of Exports and Imports) Act 1989, provided all the requirements of that Act have been met.
Industrial chemicals include a broad range of chemicals used in inks, plastics, adhesives, paints, glues, solvents, cosmetics, soaps and other products. Persistent organic pollutants including polychlorinated biphenyls (PCBs), polychlorinated triphenyls (PCTs) and polychlorinated polyphenyls; Hazardous chemicals.
Type of measure
Import licences
 ICS - HS Code
Subsidy amount Implementation period
Keywords
Environment
Hazardous
MEAs
Import Licensing Procedures G/LIC/N/3/CUB/11 Cuba 2021
Animal protection, MEAs implementation and…
Animal protection, MEAs implementation and compliance
 Import licences Other
13.1 National Registry of Cultural Property (RNBC…
13.1 National Registry of Cultural Property (RNBC)- For the purposes of the international movement of cultural property, the National Registry of Cultural Property of the Republic of Cuba (RNBC) applies a cultural property import control system. Under this system, importers may obtain a numbered document that constitutes an import certificate. For the importation of heritage property, property the composition of which includes any of the species protected under the CITES Convention, property of outstanding significance, or property of uncertain origin, the matter is put to the consideration of the CITES authority of the Ministry of Science, Technology and the Environment (CITMA), the Chair of the National Cultural Heritage Council, and the relevant bodies of the Ministry of the Interior.
Environment related objective
To control cultural heritage with a view to its preservation, and to prevent the illegal trafficking of cultural property; and comply with provision of the CITES Convention.
Measure description Coverage of the measure
13.1 National Registry of Cultural Property (RNBC)- For the purposes of the international movement of cultural property, the National Registry of Cultural Property of the Republic of Cuba (RNBC) applies a cultural property import control system. Under this system, importers may obtain a numbered document that constitutes an import certificate. For the importation of heritage property, property the composition of which includes any of the species protected under the CITES Convention, property of outstanding significance, or property of uncertain origin, the matter is put to the consideration of the CITES authority of the Ministry of Science, Technology and the Environment (CITMA), the Chair of the National Cultural Heritage Council, and the relevant bodies of the Ministry of the Interior.
- Documents and other property relating to history, including the history of science and technology, and to the life of the founders of nationality and independence, leaders and eminent figures, and events of national and international importance.- Collections or objects of scientific interest. - Products of archaeological excavations and archaeological discoveries.- Elements of artistic or historical monuments or archaeological sites which have been dismembered.- Property of artistic interest, such as original objects and works, and reproductions or copies of plastic and decorative art works and of works of applied art and popular art.- Ethnological or folkloric objects and documents. - Rare manuscripts and incunabula, books, documents and publications.- Archives, including photographic, sound and cinematographic archives.- Maps and other cartographical materials, original and printed scores, special editions and sound recordings.- Items of numismatic, philatelic and vitolphilic interest, including revenue and similar stamps, single or in collections.- Ethnographic objects and musical instruments.- Any element or part of any urban historical centre, construction or site, whether or not declared a national or local monument.
Type of measure
Import Certification
 ICS - HS Code
Subsidy amount Implementation period
Keywords
Environment
MEAs
Wildlife