Global committee to work on binding draft for accord on plastic pollution as U.S. delegation seen taking leadership
The second session of the so-called Intergovernmental Negotiating Committee that works on accords around reducing plastic pollution, including marine, ended its June 3 meeting in Paris with a mandate for the “INC Chair to prepare a zero draft of the agreement ahead of the next session” in Nairobi in November while the American Chemistry Council guild saluted the U.S. leadership.
“On the first day of the session, Member States elected Georgia, Estonia, Sweden and the U.S. to the Bureau,” according to a press release at the end of the event.
“We applaud the leadership displayed by the U.S. delegation to focus the negotiations on these elements and broker an agreement on procedure and rules so that substantive discussions could progress,” said Joshua Baca, vice president of plastics at the American Chemistry Council (ACC).
“While much work remains to be done, we are committed to continue our participation and engagement throughout the process by providing solutions, listening to different opinions, and finding common ground,” Baca added.
UNEP Director “encouraged” about binding instrument
“I am encouraged by progress at INC-2 and the mandate to prepare a zero draft of the international legally binding instrument on plastic pollution,” said Inger Andersen, Executive Director of the UN Environment Programme (UNEP).
The world is calling for an agreement “inclusive and transparent” that leans on science, learns from stakeholders, and ensures support for developing nations, Andersen added.
It’s time to redesign products “to use less plastic, particularly unnecessary and problematic plastics,” to redesign packaging, shipping, and products for reuse and recyclability, she added.
Over 700 member state delegates from 169 countries and some 900 observers from NGOs participated in this second global meeting set up to target plastic consumption and find ways to reduce waste.
France hosted the second meeting at the UNESCO headquarters in Paris. The second session followed INC-1, held in Punta del Este, Uruguay, on November 2022.
About the Intergovernmental Negotiating Committee
The United Nations Environment Assembly resolution 5/14 requested the Executive Director of UNEP to convene an intergovernmental negotiating committee to begin its work during the second half of 2022, with the aim to complete it by the end of 2024.
“The INC is tasked with developing an international legally binding instrument on plastic pollution, including in the marine environment, henceforth referred to as ‘the instrument’, which could include both binding and voluntary approaches, based on a comprehensive approach that addresses the full life cycle of plastic,” a statement said.
The American Chemistry Council’s view
“We’re pleased to have engaged with government negotiators and stakeholders throughout INC-2 to emphasize the importance of advancing a well-crafted, practical and implementable agreement focused on ending plastic pollution,” Baca said
“The negotiations underscored that there is significant alignment on the need for an agreement to accelerate circularity of plastics, unleash innovation, promote sustainable consumption and production of plastics, encourage design for circularity, and help build and sustain waste management systems around the world, all based on the unique needs and circumstances of each country,” Baca added.
The American Chemistry Council includes as members several of the world’s biggest producers of plastic resin commodities.
Efforts to reduce plastic waste, including large concentrations in rivers and oceans documented by environmental organizations, have gained traction in recent years in part following reports including some that project that by 2050 there could be more plastic by weight than fish in the oceans, as the Earth Day group published in a Fact Sheet in March 2022.
The moves by plastic resin producers to engage other stakeholders impacted by plastic waste follow changes including greater regulatory action against plastic with cities and countries worldwide in some cases banning some types of plastic and even discussing initiatives to get manufactures of plastic packaging to pay for the pollution.
In addition, there are indices and funds that help investors avoid exposure to that have seen brisk growth in recent years.
By Renzo Pipoli