Plastic is a useful product but it causes immense environmental problems
The intergovernmental negotiating committee will meet in Busan, South Korea, in November to finalise an international legally binding agreement on plastic pollution.
Plastic is useful; it can be moulded into different forms for a variety of uses. It is also fairly cheap to make. But its harms are ubiquitous.
“An estimated nine to 14 million tonnes of plastic waste ends up in our oceans every year,” the World Wildlife Fund wrote. “Plastic waste has been found in all areas of the globe, from the deepest seas to the most remote mountains. It causes major harm to wildlife and ecosystems, but also disrupts the livelihood of millions of people, as well as posing significant risk to human health and the world economy.”
Evidently something needs to be done about the plastic pollution flowing into the ocean, which is set to triple by 2040 if nothing is done about it.
Plastic breaks down into microplastic, which is smaller than 5mm. The process of making plastic and its disposal is responsible for about 3% of global emissions, according to 2023 data.
The meeting in Busan at the end of the year is crucial.
“Don’t kick the can – or the plastic bottle – down the road. Give the people of the world what they demand: an end to plastic pollution,” Inger Andersen, executive director of the United Nations Environment Programme, said recently.
“Do this by landing an instrument that addresses the life cycle of plastic. An instrument that is ambitious, credible and just. That responds to the needs of people and communities. And that protects people and the planet from plastic pollution.”
Andersen is under no illusions about how useful plastic is in many industries.
“This instrument is not about banning essential plastics,” she said. “We will need it in clean transport, the energy transition, construction, healthcare and more. But we need to be far more careful about how, where and when we use this durable and flexible material.”
It is important to tackle single-use plastics, which need to “stay in the economy, not the environment”, Andersen said.
But a lot of work still has to be done. In the high-level meeting to finalise a draft for the treaty that took place in Nairobi last year, criticism was levelled at oil-producing nations, which were accused of stalling tactics during negotiations.
But Kenya’s President William Ruto believes progress is being made towards achieving a global treaty to end plastic pollution.
“While challenges remain — such as resistance to regulating production and banning harmful chemicals — we must push forward with strong political will to ensure that we succeed. The treaty does not need to ban plastics entirely, but it must regulate production to minimise environmental harm.
He also stressed the need to ban single-use plastics, “which account for 36% of global plastic production and significantly contribute to waste,” he told the United Nations recently.
Plastic also affects people unequally. Africa, for example, has a high burden of plastic pollution.
“Africa consumes less plastic per capita than the rest of the world and yet Africa is the second-most polluted continent in the world,” Janine Osborne, chief executive of the Sustainable Seas Trust (SST), a science-based organisation working to protect the seas, said in a statement.
“Addressing Africa’s growing plastic waste problem while simultaneously unlocking the socio-economic benefits of sustainable waste management requires an urgent and comprehensive systems response by governments, businesses, and civil society,” she said.
The SST has produced a book that notes ways plastic pollution can be limited. These include: Well-developed recycling infrastructure; Environmentally-friendly disposal methods; High levels of knowledge, education, and awareness among all stakeholders; and Stable financing.
The SST believes these can be reached through an economy-based approach, voluntary initiatives to finance waste management, municipal fees, taxes and using the “polluter-pays principle”. It also noted that legislation is required to ensure the plastic pollution crisis is managed.
In addition, the SST said a circular economy in which reuse, repair and recycle systems are adopted is essential. This can be achieved through public-private partnerships, technology, redefining waste as a resource and ensuring producers are responsible for their products.
Osborne said the plastics treaty presents an opportunity for countries to address the accelerating problem of plastic waste, but the obligations could prove onerous for African developing states. “Signatories must draw up detailed action plans that outline how they will tackle plastic waste, set future targets, and monitor progress.”
Waste pickers do crucial recycling work in the plastic space and the global treaty needs to ensure these workers’ livelihoods are protected.
As signed members of a global treaty on plastic pollution, countries can be held accountable for preventing pollution and cleaning up the environment.