Sierra Club Analysis of TPP Environment Chapter
After nearly six years of Trans-Pacific Partnership (TPP) negotiations conducted under extraordinary secrecy, the release of the final text reveals that the TPP environment chapter fails to protect our environment. The chapter excludes core environmental commitments that have been included in all U.S. trade agreements since 2007 and fails to meet the minimum degree of environmental protection required under the Bipartisan Congressional Trade Priorities and Accountability Act of 2015, also referred to as “fast track.” Even more, it falls far short of the meaningful protections called for by environmental groups including the Sierra Club, the nation’s oldest and largest grassroots environmental organization. Provisions in the text that have been touted as new are generally hampered by weak language that would not adequately protect the environment.