WHAT IS PLASTIC TREATY

The Plastic Treaty is a United Nations-led agreement to reduce plastic pollution and create a plastic-free future. The treaty is being developed by the Intergovernmental Negotiating Committee (INC), which was appointed by the UN Environment Assembly in March 2022. The INC intends to complete negotiations by the end of 2024.

It will be a legally binding international agreement on plastic. The objective of the agreement is to address the complete life cycle of plastic, from manufacture to disposal. It will establish a global standard for plastic usage and is expected to be the most significant environmental agreement since the Paris Agreement on Climate Change.

Objective Of Plastic Treaty

• Reducing plastic manufacturing: The treaty seeks to reduce the manufacture of virgin plastic.

• Promoting sustainable alternatives: The treaty seeks to foster sustainable alternatives to plastic.

• Improving recycling: The treaty seeks to promote recycling.

• Transitioning to a circular economy: The treaty intends to move toward a circular economy that lowers waste and reuses materials.

• Protecting ecosystems: The treaty seeks to conserve ecosystems, particularly marine habitats.

• Addressing health concerns: The treaty seeks to address health issues associated with plastic in the environment, such as hazardous chemical exposure and microplastics in food and water.

• Increasing producer duty: The pact seeks to raise producers’ responsibility for controlling the life cycle of plastics.

• The treaty seeks to promote reuse systems.

What is INC?

The Intergovernmental Negotiating Committee (INC) was established in February 2022, at the 5th session of the United Nations Environment Assembly (UNEA-5.2). ) Its goal is to push for an international plastics agreement that will be legally binding. “End plastic pollution: Towards an international legally binding instrument” is the title of the resolution.

Meetings

The INC began its work in the second half of 2022, with the goal of completing the negotiations by the end of 2024. The INC had its first session (INC-1) from November 28 to December 2, 2022, in Punta del Este, Uruguay, and a second session (INC-2) from May 29 to June 2, 2023, in Paris, France. The third session (INC-3) took place from November 13 to 19, 2023 in Nairobi, Kenya, and was followed by the fourth session (INC-4) on April 23 to 29, 2024 in Ottawa, Canada.

The fifth session (INC-5) is set for November 25–December 1, 2024, in Busan, Republic of Korea.

Why We Need This?

Plastic pollution is becoming a severe global environmental concern, wreaking havoc on the environmental, social, economic, and health aspects of sustainable development. Under a business-as-usual scenario and in the absence of appropriate measures, the amount of plastic waste entering aquatic ecosystems is expected to nearly triple from 9-14 million tonnes per year in 2016 to 23-37 million tonnes per year by 2040.

CONCLUSION

The UN’s Global Plastics Treaty is a legally binding commitment to combat plastic pollution and achieve a future free of plastic waste. The deal will establish plastic consumption norms, regulate the amount of plastic that may be manufactured, and restrict the usage of specific chemicals and products. Without a pact, plastic pollution is expected to triple by 2040. The treaty helps provide a level playing field for countries to take action and minimize plastic pollution.

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