ENVIRONMENTAL MARKETING AND FEDERAL PREEMPTION OF STATE-LAW - ELIMINATING THE GRAY BEHIND THE GREEN

In recent years, there has been a significant increase in the use of environmental, or ''green,'' claims in marketing. The author argues that clearly defined national standards are necessary to combat the problems associated with such claims: deception on the part of manufacturers, uncertainty as to what claims they can legitimately make, and confusion among consumers as to what green marketing claims can be trusted. The author argues that state laws are inadequate for two reasons: first, general deceptive advertising laws are too ambiguous to address the specific problem of green marketing regulation; and second, because different states have set different standards, even those laws which directly address green marketing make it too difficult for manufacturers to market nationwide. The author further argues that the Deceptive Advertising Clause of the Federal Trade Commission Act is too ambiguous, and that Congress should enact a uniform national standard for green marketing. Since the FTC does not have the expertise to define the terms, the EPA ought to have primary responsibility for setting and enforcing the standards. Furthermore, the new federal standard ought to preempt state laws, but not prevent states from playing an active role in defining and enforcing federal law.