The Basel Convention on the Transboundary Movement of Hazardous Wastes and their Disposal is a key environmental treaty. This report examines the development, effectiveness and future of the trade-restrictive provisions of the regime, including recent efforts to ban transfers of hazardous wastes from industrialized to developing countries, the compatibility of the trade restrictions and the WTO, the special concerns of developing countries, and the potential impact of the Basel Convention on trade in non-hazardous recyclable materials.