China Environmental Law

You may recall that we recently picked up a report on Vermont Public Radio about a frightfully naive Vermont legislator who was scandalized to learn that big bad foreigners may be interested in what the democratically elected legislature in little ole Vermont was up to with respect to electronic product recycling legislation. 

It turns out that the Chinese government did get wind of the proposed Vermont legislation through WTO notification channels.  It then elected to express an opinion as the the proposed law.

Legislator Lyons’ hyperventilating, however, made it sound like the Chinese intervention in Vermont was about as subtle as massing PLA forces on the New Hampshire border. In fact, the extent of the Chinese “intervention” consisted of a rather technical and bland comment letter addressing the adverse impact of the proposed legislation upon foreign manufacturers of electronic products sold in Vermont.  You may read the entire text of the letter at ITSSD Journal on Disguised Trade Barriers –which is not quite as temperate in its treatment of Legislator Lyon as I have been (”We suggest that Vermont state senator Lyons wake up from her deep sleep or self-imposed stupor and look out over the global horizon to see a brave new world of international trade.”  I have spared you the all cap format of the original). 

There is no suggestion that China’s letter was wrapped around a wad of 100 RMB notes, so I am at a loss to understand the fuss here.  I’m actually impressed with the sophistication of China’s efforts to help its domestic industry.  The only mistake it made was to assume that the recipients of its letter would have a similar level of sophistication.