OECD work on environmental labelling: past and present The OECD has a long history of influencing the development of environmental labels. Following the first report on environmental labelling in 1976, extensive reviews of existing and planned schemes were carried out in the 1980s and into the 1990s, contributing to promoting their use and effectiveness. Later work turned to interactions of environmental labelling and information schemes (ELIS) and international trade, notably from the late 1990s. Recent OECD work has focused on the multiplication of schemes, through a joint project of the Joint Working Party on Trade and Environment (JWPTE) and the Working Party on Integrating Environmental and Economic Policies (WPIEEP). The joint project produced three reports since 2013: •
The first report documented the scale and nature of this growth and multiplication . It provided a new characterisation of the many types of scheme and presented quantified growth trends. The report also mapped the complex and dynamic landscape of ELIS actors, including suppliers and users as well as other institutions and stakeholders involved in development and operation of schemes.
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A second strand of the work investigated the implications of the rapid growth of schemes around the world, notably for environmental effectiveness and international trade. The report also considered responses to ELIS multiplication by government and non-government actors, as well as the implications of these responses for environment and trade.
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A third report centred on how public policies have guided and regulated ELIS, with a particular focus on self-made environmental claims. This included a comparative analysis of guidelines and regulatory instruments examined definitions, standards, labelling requirements as well as monitoring and enforcement.