Taiwan, Czech Republic ink eco-label agreement

The Environmental Protection Administration (EPA) announced earlier this week that the nation reached an agreement with the Czech Republic toward the end of last year that means both countries will recognize the efficacy of eco-labels issued by each other.

The move will make the Czech Republic the ninth country in the world to sign such an agreement with Taiwan, following the US, Canada, Japan, Korea, Thailand, New Zealand, Australia and Ukraine.

Division at the EPA's Supervision Evaluation and Dispute Resolution Department Chien Kuang-wen (簡光文) said yesterday the announcement had been delayed until this month because both sides needed to present the official documents to their respective supervisory agencies, who were in charge of approving them.

Chien that the agreement would greatly shorten the time taken for products to obtain eco-labels in both countries.

"A manufacturer can finish all the certification procedures in Taiwan and they will be recognized by the Czech government," he said. "It will then allow the Czech government to quickly issue an eco label to the manufacturer, without having to ask them to go through the time and money-consuming process again."

The significance of the agreement also lies in the fact that the Czech Eco-labeling Agency (CEA) recognizes that Taiwan's eco-labels certification mechanism conforms to international standards, he said.

The EPA has no plans to sign any similar agreements with any other country for the time being, he added.

Last year, the EPA authorized the non-governmental Environment and Development Foundation (EDF) to negotiate terms of the agreement with CEA representatives.

An EPA statement issued on Thursday said the terms required Taiwan to assist the Czech government in fulfilling the requirements of the Global Eco-labeling Network (GEN).

GEN a non-profit organization made up of 26 eco-label organizations from around the globe.

The Taiwanese government will assist the Czech government in translating the functions of the latter's eco-labels into English. Meanwhile, Taiwan is required to help the Czech government in compiling documents listing procedures needed before the latter can issue eco-labels to manufacturers.

This will help the Czech government in its application for certification from GEN this year.

The agreement also authorizes Taiwan to review eco-label applications submitted by Taiwanese manufacturers on behalf of the Czech government if they want to export their products or services to the Czech Republic.

Taiwan one of the few countries in the world where the government has laws to encourage "green procurement" -- the purchase of products or services that have less impact on the environment.

Article of the Government Procurement Act (政府採購法) stipulates that products bearing government-certified eco-labels will get preferential treatment, provided that the difference between the competing prices does not exceed 10 percent of the government's base price.