What is the proposed global plastic treaty?
STORY: There’s a global plastics treaty on the horizon….
one that would cut plastic pollution – some hope entirely by 2040.
It’s been described by the U.N. as the most significant green deal since the Paris climate accord.
‘’A legally binding solution is now necessary to bring all countries on board.’’
So, what exactly is being proposed?
The U.N. Environment Programme says the equivalent of one garbage truck worth of plastic is dumped into the ocean every single minute,
and greenhouse gas emissions associated with plastics are expected to reach 6.5 gigatons by 2050.
U.N. members first agreed to create a treaty to deal with the plastic problem in March 2022.
But not everyone agrees on how to proceed.
The U.N. talks in Uruguay in December 2022 give delegates another chance to discuss the future treaty.
Several countries have voiced support for a treaty cracking down on the production of plastic.
Japan’s vice minister for global environmental affairs, Hiroshi Ono, spoke at the Reuters NEXT conference.
"There are many, many voluntary initiatives to address plastic pollution. But, you know, increasing pollution suggests that they are clearly not sufficient to address the issue so far. A legally binding solution is now necessary to bring all countries on board and raise awareness of all stakeholders, including the general public."
It's the first time Japan has said it would support curbs on plastic production.
But such an approach is opposed by the plastics and petrochemical industries.
Lobbyist for the American Chemistry Council, Stewart Harris, told Reuters that it would be better to look at the entire life-cycle of a product instead.
"We need to look at delivery mechanisms for consumers across the lifecycle of plastics and across the various uses. But when we start to talk about restricting production, it becomes very complicated because again, that production doesn't go into a specific application per se. And so restricting production of polyethylene or polypropylene or other different resins will have tremendous negative impacts on the economy."
Harris also says plastic makers need to more transparent about the chemicals used in their products…
as concern mounts about the health impacts of the everyday material finding its way into the food chain and human bodies.
‘’We need a multilateral approach because plastic waste knows no borders. "
Jodie Roussell, public affairs lead for packaging and sustainability at Nestle, told the Reuters Next panel she hoped the treaty would help establish global quality controls for plastic –especially recycled plastic.
‘’We want to keep plastics in the economy and out of nature. I think everyone agrees on that and we recognize that water reuse and recycling can play roles here because reuse can increase with the number of cycles a reusable package is circulated dramatically reduce the amount of recycling that needs to be built, and thirdly, prevent and remediate hard to prevent microplastics and macroplastics from leaking into the environment.’’
The U.N. treaty is supposed to be finalized by 2024.
Some NGOs that are closely observing the talks have expressed concern about the Paris agreement-style approach....
on the basis that, seven years in, they say it has failed to deliver.
