The United Nations on Wednesday launched formal negotiations on a global treaty to address the “epidemic” of plastic garbage on the planet, a move that supporters describe as historic.
The United Nations General Assembly for the Environment (UNEA), meeting in Nairobi, Kenya, was about to adopt a resolution for the establishment of an intergovernmental committee to negotiate and finalize a legally binding agreement for 2024.
“This is a day for history books,” said Norwegian Climate and Environment Minister Espen Barth Eide, who chairs the UNEA. “We are about to embark on an extremely important process of negotiating a solid treaty to ban plastic pollution.”
The framework for a global agreement also has the approval of the major plastic-producing nations, including the United States and China.
Officials say it gives negotiators a strong and comprehensive mandate to consider new rules to target plastic contamination, ranging from the raw material phase to product design and use and, finally, disposal.
This could include limits on the manufacture of new plastic, which is mainly derived from oil and gas, although the details of the policy will only be determined during subsequent talks.
The mandate provides for the negotiation of binding global targets with monitoring mechanisms, the development of national plans and funding for the poorest countries.
Negotiators are also able to consider all aspects of pollution, not just plastic in the ocean, but tiny particles in the air, soil and food chain, a key demand of many countries.
The amount of plastic waste entering the oceans is projected to triple by 2040 and governments have been pressured to unite behind a global response to the crisis.
“Today, no part of the planet is affected by plastic pollution, from sediments in the depths of the sea to Everest,” said UN Under-Secretary-General Amina Mohammed. “The planet deserves a truly multilateral solution to this scourge that affects us all.”
The rate of plastic production has grown faster than any other material and is expected to double in two decades, according to the UN.
But less than 10 percent is recycled and most ends up in landfills or oceans, creating what Eide called an “epidemic” of plastic garbage.
According to some estimates, the amount of plastic in a garbage truck is dumped into the sea every minute.
Large pieces of plastic are a notorious danger to seabirds, whales and other marine animals. But at the microscopic level, plastic particles can also enter the food chain and eventually enter the human diet.
“The world is calling for action against plastic pollution,” said Inger Andersen, head of the UN Environment Program (UNEP), which is hosting the talks. “The decisions you make today will be monumental.”
But he warned that after this “crucial step” will come the hard work of negotiating a strong and binding treaty.
Environmental groups are encouraged by the broad scope given to negotiators, but say the strength of the treaty is yet to be determined.
The first round of negotiations is set for the second half of this year, according to sources involved in the process.
Large corporations have expressed support for a treaty that creates a set of common rules around plastic and a level playing field for competition.
Major plastics manufacturers have stressed the importance of plastics in the construction, medical and other vital industries and have warned that banning certain materials would lead to supply chain disruptions.
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- polution
- plastics
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