Material Impacts of Trade and Investment on Sustainable Development

Based on a survey of concerns raised in recent sustainability impact assessments (SIAs), environmental reviews (ERs) and environmental assessments (EAs), this chapter uncovers illustrative examples which help explain the potential material impacts of increased trade and investment on economic, social and environmental conditions that can affect countries’ potential for sustainable development. To this end, it briefly reviews material economic, social and environmental concerns documented in European SIAs such as the EU-Chile SIA; in North American ERs such as the Chile-US ER; and other impacts assessments, including several social and human rights impacts assessments. It then draws on this review to consider the negative social and environmental impacts that may be caused or exacerbated by trade and investment treaty provisions, recognizing that social and environmental impacts of liberalization under trade and investment agreements are not always positive. Further, it introduces the need to consider how States are seeking to mitigate such impacts, including the necessary policy and legal dimensions discussed in the following chapter.