The United States is the world's largest market for both remediation and nature and landscape protection services, reports the U.S. International Trade Commission (ITC) in its study Remediation and Nature and Landscape Protection Services: An Examination of U.S. and Foreign Markets.

The ITC, an independent, nonpartisan, factfinding federal agency, conducted the investigation at the request of the U.S. Trade Representative. The report provides an overview of foreign and domestic markets for remediation and nature and landscape protection services; examines trade and investment in remediation and nature and landscape protection services markets, including barriers affecting such trade and investment; and discusses existing regulatory practices. Highlights of the report follow.

• The United States is the world's largest market for remediation services. Other large remediation markets include Western Europe and Japan. Most observers agree that the U.S. market is mature, reflecting a situation under which U.S. regulations have already led to the cleanup of many of the most highly contaminated sites in the country. In most other countries, the regulatory process is at a much earlier stage of development. Observers expect that foreign remediation markets will grow during the next 10 to 15 years as regulations are clarified and more funding is devoted to remediation projects in those markets.

• There does not appear to be a well-defined market for nature and landscape protection services among the markets selected for analysis (Australia, Canada, China, the Czech Republic, the European Union, Japan, Malaysia, Mexico, Poland, the United States, and developing countries considered as a group). A wide variety of laws and regulations pertain to the market in these countries, and there are few firms that specialize in the industry. However, the prevalence of biodiversity-related regulations in these markets as well as widespread membership in multilateral conventions on nature and landscape protection issues demonstrate global awareness of such concerns.

• The extent of cross-border trade and investment in remediation and nature and landscape protection services markets is small compared with some other segments of the environmental services industry but is expected to grow in the long term as the markets for these services mature outside of the United States. Few of the countries selected for discussion in this report have explicit restrictions on trade in remediation and nature and landscape protection services. However, regulations and practices that pertain to all sectors, or to related sectors such as engineering and environmental consulting, can potentially affect trade in the remediation and nature and landscape protection services industries.

Remediation and Nature and Landscape Protection Services: An Examination of U.S. and Foreign Markets (Investigation No. 332-454, USITC publication 3727, October 2004) will be posted in the Publications area of the ITC Internet site at www.usitc.gov. A printed or CD-ROM copy may be requested by calling 202-205-1809 or by writing the office of the Secretary, U.S. International Trade Commission, 500 E Street SW, Washington, DC, 20436. Requests may also be made by fax to 202-205-2104.

ITC general factfinding investigations, such as this one, cover matters related to tariffs or trade. The investigations are generally conducted at the request of USTR, the Senate Committee on Finance, or the House Committee on Ways and Means; the ITC may also self-initiate investigations. The resulting reports convey the Commission's objective findings and independent analyses on the subjects investigated. The Commission makes no recommendations on policy or other matters in its general factfinding reports. Upon completion of each investigation, the ITC submits its finding and analyses to the requester. General factfinding investigation reports are subsequently released to the public, unless they are classified by the requester for national security reasons.