The (Regulatory) Clash of Titans?

There has been a growing tenstion between the U.S. and the EU over their diverging regulatory stances over various issues, such as GM food, which have negatively affected the transatlantic trade. This tenstion is likely only to be intensified as the EU is enlarged. See Washington bridles at EU urge to regulate, Financial Times, May 12, 2006 (http://news.ft.com/cms/s/2cc9a068-e11b-11da-90ad-0000779e2340.html) Interestingly, the new U.S. Ambassador to the EU (Boyden Gray) is a top regulatory lawyer, not a typlical diplomat. Perhaps, the U.S. is trying to prepare for a futurte regulatory warfare with the EU.

At the center of this tension lies the recently proposed new EU regulatory framework for the Registration, Evaluation and Authorisation of Chemicals (REACH) (http://ec.europa.eu/comm/environment/chemicals/reach.htm The aim of this new regulatory scheme is understandable, i.e., to protect human health and the environment. But, this new regulation, the U.S. fears, will put non-EU companies at a serious competitive disadvantage in terms of trade. Maybe, we can see yet another big case in the WTO in the near future.