The Environment Directorate consists of a multicultural team, encompassing over 200 international civil servants, including economists, policy analysts, scientists, statisticians and administrative staff. It delivers the OECD’s Environment Programme, supporting national governments through robust cross-country comparable environmental data, sound economic and policy analysis, actionable recommendations, environment and other outlooks, country reviews and cross-country dialogues.

The Environment Programme helps OECD Members and Partners design and implement economically efficient and effective environment policies to achieve their domestic objectives and international commitments. The Programme covers a range of environmental topics from climate change, biodiversity and water, to chemical safety, finance and investment for environmental goals, energy, resource productivity, waste, circular economy, trade, social and economic outcomes, and green growth.

The Environment Directorate also provides the Secretariat for the Environment Policy Committee, the Chemicals and Biotechnology Committee and their subsidiary bodies and stakeholders. 

Two Commitees oversee and implement the OECD’s Environment Programme. 

EPOC oversees and implements large parts of the OECD’s Environment Programme, supported by ten subsidiary bodies. Established in 1971, EPOC reports to the OECD Council and consists of senior-level delegates from capitals who meet three times per biennium. The Committee holds meetings at the Ministerial level approximately every four to five years.

Key themes addressed by EPOC and seven of its Working Parties include green growth, climate change, biodiversity, water, finance and investment for environmental goals, energy, resource productivity, waste, and the circular economy, social and economic outcomes, and the ocean, resource efficiency, green growth.

EPOC formally co-operates with other OECD Committees, including through three joint bodies, the Joint Working Parties on Trade and Environment and on Agriculture and Environment, as well as Joint Meetings of Experts on Tax and Environment.

EPOC also leads horizontal work with other OECD bodies to ensure coherence of messages on environment policy and to mainstream climate and other environmental work across the OECD.

The CBC oversees and implements the chemicals and biotechnology parts of the OECD’s Environment Programme, supported by twelve subsidiary bodies. Key themes addressed by the CBC are the further development and maintenance of the system of Mutual Acceptance of data related to the safety of chemicals, the development of new generation risk assessment methodologies, the reduction of risks from chemicals (for example certain fluorinated chemicals) and the promotion of sustainable chemistry solutions. The CBC also oversees a programme on the safety of genetically modified organisms. The CBC reports to the OECD Council.