Several disputes relating to renewable energy are underway at the World Trade Organization (WTO). The Appellate Body has released its first decision on this subject on the feed-in tariff for electricity in the province of Ontario. The disputes raise once again the issue of the relationship between international trade law and environmental protection. Evolving WTO jurisprudence should be able to resolve many of the difficulties, although the crucial problem of the treatment of production and processing methods remains obscure after the Canada – Renewable Energy decision. Questions of fundamental theory lie close to the surface of these debates. The recent expansion in the number of international regimes and tribunals highlights the importance of approaches to interpretation in public international law. As countries negotiate new treaties to address the needs of global society, potential conflicts and overlapping provisions are likely to appear. Differences of opinion about reliance on non-WTO treaties in the WTO dispute settlement system illustrate problems that can be anticipated in several fora. To achieve workable solutions for renewable energy disputes and many others, interpretation should promote the harmonious integration of obligations, in accordance with the intent of the negotiators.

The Harmonized Commodity Description and Coding System (Harmonized System) has been adopted by the major trading nations of the world, including Canada. Decisions of the European Court of Justice are influential for interpretation of the Harmonized System. According to these decisions, goods should be classified under the Harmonized System on the basis of their physical characteristics, while factors that relate to use after importation should be considered only if they are reflected in the physical characteristics. The author rejects this narrow approach and argues that interpretation will be successful only if it is done in light of the full commercial context, including use after importation, advertising, distribution, and market indicators such as price. The article reviews Canadian case law since implementation of the Harmonized System in 1988 as well as some decisions interpreting the pre-1988 Canadian nomenclature, which contained many tariff items that depended on the end use of goods after importation.

Recent decisions of the Appellate Body of the WTO deal with the interpretation of GATT Article XX, which provides exemptions from trade obligations for important non-trade policies such as the protection of health and the environment. The article discusses those decisions, as well as the balance between trade and non-trade interests in the provisions of the Agreement on the Application of Sanitary and Phytosanitary Measures and the Agreement on Technical Barriers to Trade.