Scientists have also investigated claims about the influence of the structure of the problem on the design of the IEA (Koremenos et al. 2001; Mitchell, 2006). The coding of nineteen IEA processes has shown that states prefer integrated, globalized and formal EIAs when addressing environmental issues in the industrial sector versus problems in the agricultural or land use sector (Ovodenko 2016; Ovodenko, 2017). Balsiger and Prys (2016) found that the geographical characteristics of a problem influence the likelihood that states will negotiate BAIs, as well as the institutional form and binding precision of BAIs, with states preferring regional cooperation to global cooperation (Balsiger and Prys, 2016). Spilker and Koubi (2016) and Mohrenberg et al. (2019) show that States take longer to ratify multilateral environmental agreements, not only where national law requires a super-majority, but also where the Agreement on Markets in the European Economy contains provisions on dispute settlement, monitoring, enforcement, quantitative targets and financial mechanisms. The topics covered in these agreements are very broad: biodiversity and nature conservation, climate change, protection of the ozone layer, desertification, chemicals and waste management, transboundary water and air pollution, environmental policy (including impact assessments, access to information and public participation), industrial accidents, maritime and river protection, environmental responsibility. These negotiations aim to reaffirm the importance of collaboration between trade and environmental policies for the benefit of both sides. They focus on how WTO rules should be applied to WTO members that are parties to environmental agreements, in particular to clarify the relationship between certain trade measures taken under environmental agreements and WTO rules. Action plans, guidelines and commissions are examples of non-binding environmental measures. Signatories are not required by law to meet the requirements or conditions, so non-binding measures can serve as political indicators of the government`s intention. The objective of CITES is to regulate international trade in certain endangered plants and animals. There are nearly 36,000 plants and animals protected by CITES, and species are divided into three levels of protection based on the level of regulation required.
The term environment is defined in a broad sense. Some agreements include a number of environmental protection measures, while others are extremely specific. The draft database on international environmental agreements divides the agreements into the following environmental categories: Since the beginning of the negotiations, discussions have focused on the scope of the negotiating mandate (including the definition of specific trade commitments) and on the possible outcomes of the negotiations. At the same time, Members have also begun to share their national experiences in negotiating and implementing trade measures under multilateral environmental agreements. The IEADB undergoes major updates for new IAS and IEA memberships approximately every two years, and also adds encodings of design features by scientists who use them as soon as they are available. This article contains data about the December 2016 update. States` efforts to manage common environmental resources, conserve natural habitats and reduce environmental damage have created a complex ecosystem of international environmental law. Since 2003, the Database on International Environmental Agreements (BIDEA) has become a comprehensive and up-to-date census of International Environmental Agreements (IAAs) that promotes access to their texts and data on their design characteristics and memberships.1 Although other datasets contain many BAIs, the IDB provides a more comprehensive research base, up-to-date, consistent and transparent in terms of content. Since 2002, the lead author and colleagues have developed and applied systematic research and inclusion criteria to capture all EIAs, defined as an “intergovernmental document intended to be legally binding, whose primary objective is to prevent or manage human impacts on natural resources” (Mitchell 2003, 432). The BIDE contains agreements, protocols or amendments that States have successfully negotiated, even if they have not entered into force.
EBDA contains searchable texts; the deadlines for signature, ratification and entry into force; topics; “Ancestry” categorizations (see below); performance counters; and encoding design features. It contains multilateral (MEAs, open to three or more States) and bilateral (EBA, limited to two States) EEA. The IDB`s census is based on the evaluation of proposed additions against clear definitions of BAIs operationalized as inclusion/exclusion rules, an essential process given the diversity of documentary sources. .