Plastics crisis grows as UN treaty talks end in failure

Petrostates and major plastics producers prove inflexible over binding measures

- David Fogarty

The failure of UN talks in Geneva to seal a global plastics treaty on Aug 15 risks worsening a global environmental and human health crisis by further delaying production curbs that many nations and environmental groups say are urgently needed.

Much had been riding on the Geneva talks. There were hopes delegates would finally agree on a binding pact to tackle the growing amounts of plastic waste fouling rivers and oceans, as concerns grow over the health impacts of microplastic fragments that are now found in almost every part of the human body.

The talks went deep into overtime on Aug 15, the 12th day of negotiations, but delegates from more than 180 nations, including Singapore, could not resolve deep disagreements over the scope of the treaty.

The majority of nations—many from Europe, the Pacific, Africa, Asia and Latin America—backed treaty language on reducing plastic production, phasing out toxic chemicals used in plastics, and improving plastic product designs that boost recycling and cut waste.

But petrostates such as Saudi Arabia, Kuwait and Malaysia as well as major plastics producers wanted treaty language narrowly based on voluntary actions and a focus on waste management, observers said.

These nations see binding curbs on the production of virgin plastic as a threat to profits—about 98 per cent of plastics are made from fossil fuels. As consumers switch to electric vehicles and demand for oil falls, this group sees plastics as a growth area.

"The whole process is being led by a small group of countries that have the lowest ambition. And they have the veto power—any one country can just raise their hand and decline to agree on a decision that the others make," surmised Mr Dharmesh Shah, senior consulting campaigner on the plastics treaty for the Centre for International Environmental Law (Ciel).