Environmental Impacts of the ASEAN-China Free Trade Agreement on the Greater Mekong Sub-Region

The report assesses the environmental consequences of the ASEAN-China Free Trade Agreement (ACFTA) on the Greater Mekong Sub-region (GMS). It finds that while trade has increased, a third of the trade volume involves highly polluting sectors, with much of this pollution originating in China. In Cambodia, imports of polluting goods from China have improved the local environment at the expense of China's, while the increase in natural resource-based exports threatens resource sustainability due to weak regulation. The author concludes that the ACFTA's lack of environmental cooperation provisions is a significant policy shortcoming.

• Trade between China and the Greater Mekong Sub-region (GMS) has grown significantly following the ACFTA, particularly for goods with reduced tariffs. In Cambodia, some exports have grown more slowly because exporters struggle to meet China's import standards for fish, live animals, and cassava.
• One third of the trade volume between China and GMS countries consists of products in the most polluting sectors, defined as those emitting more than 1,500 pounds of total toxic pollution per million USD of production. Because China is the primary producer of these goods, much of the region's pollution intensity originates there; for Cambodia, importing these goods has resulted in an environmental 'gain' locally while causing degradation in China.
• Increased trade in wood, minerals, and agricultural commodities raises concerns about resource depletion. This is especially critical in Cambodia due to its reliance on these exports to China, existing issues like biodiversity loss and forest cover reduction, and weak environmental regulations.
• The ACFTA lacks provisions for environmental cooperation, which the report describes as a significant failure in regional economic policy making. To mitigate negative impacts, environmental issues must be integrated into trade negotiations.
• Cambodia needs to prioritize improving natural resource governance by addressing budget shortages, lack of skilled staff, poor facilities, and overlapping agency responsibilities.

APA

Jalilian,, V. H. (2008). Environmental Impacts of the ASEAN-China Free Trade Agreement on the Greater Mekong Sub-Region. International Institute for Sustainable Development. https://www.iisd.org/publications/report/environmental-impacts-asean-china-free-trade-agreement-greater-mekong-sub

Chicago

Jalilian,, Vutha Hing,Hossein. Environmental Impacts of the ASEAN-China Free Trade Agreement on the Greater Mekong Sub-Region. International Institute for Sustainable Development, 2008. https://www.iisd.org/publications/report/environmental-impacts-asean-china-free-trade-agreement-greater-mekong-sub.

Wikipedia

{{cite report |last1=Jalilian, |first1=Vutha Hing,Hossein |title=Environmental Impacts of the ASEAN-China Free Trade Agreement on the Greater Mekong Sub-Region |publisher=International Institute for Sustainable Development |date=14 October 2008 |url=https://www.iisd.org/publications/report/environmental-impacts-asean-china-free-trade-agreement-greater-mekong-sub |access-date=17 August 2026 |via=Climate Insights Directory}}

BibTeX

@techreport{jalilian2008environmental, author = {Jalilian,, Vutha Hing,Hossein}, title = {{Environmental Impacts of the ASEAN-China Free Trade Agreement on the Greater Mekong Sub-Region}}, institution = {International Institute for Sustainable Development}, year = {2008}, month = oct, url = {https://www.iisd.org/publications/report/environmental-impacts-asean-china-free-trade-agreement-greater-mekong-sub}, urldate = {2026-08-17}, note = {Indexed by Climate Insights Directory} }