P.E.I.'s voice at the NAFTA trade talks will be heading off to Washington next week for the fourth round of negotiations.

Kal Whitnell, senior director for economic research and trade negotiations for the province, has been consulting with Island businesses and industries about their concerns and interests in the talks.

"They don't want to go backwards. The business environment is working well," said Whitnell.

"The economic integration is very deep."

There are P.E.I. companies with operations in the U.S., and U.S. companies with operations on P.E.I., he said. They want to make sure that as individuals and workers they can continue to cross the border and do the work they need to do

All the provinces and territories have representatives at the meetings, but they are not at the table itself, said Whitnell.

Those representatives are nearby, going over proposals and strategies with the main Canadian negotiators.

The current plan is for seven rounds of negotiations before the end of the year, and Whitnell is optimistic about how they are progressing.