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Negotiations on the global state for plastic pollution again begin on Tuesday (August 5) in Geneva, when national delegations were designed to overcome the dead end, which led to the collapse of negotiations in 2023.
In the framework of the second stage of the fifth session of the Inter-government Committee of Trade (InC-5.2), negotiators will have two weeks to reach a joint agreement on a legally mandatory global state against plastic pollution.
The meeting is held in the climate of an increase in awareness of the global crisis of Plastmass, while more and more obvious consequences for the environment and health. The international community shows signs of mobilization, when more and more leaders and scientists are calling for an agreement that responds to the amount of call.
“Good bell” and a call of a scientific community
During the United Nations conference in oceans in July, ministers and representatives of more than 95 countries signed a joint declaration known as “Good bell” (Good bell for awakening) in which they are looking for an ambitious and significant result.
Central Requirement: Coverage approach The entire life cycle of plasticincluding Mandatory production restrictions And The abolition of toxic chemicalsField
The same week More than 60 best scientists From all over the world, an open letter to governments inviting them to take on the obligation ambitious and applicable solutions In Geneva.
“This is not just a call to action – this is a scientific community that testifies to its testimony,” he said Professor Steve Fletcherdirector The revolution of the plastic institute and editor -in -chice of the scientific Journal Cambridge prisms: plasticsField
“We watched the accumulation of evidence for decades. This condition is a test for whether the world is ready to control plastics on the basis of the scale and urgent nature of the crisis. ”
What do scientists ask?
For the scientific community Inc-5.2 The last and best opportunity For a global mandatory collision agreement The entire life cycle of plasticNot only waste.
Some oil countries prefer to focus on waste management, taking into account the restriction of the production of unnecessary.
However, scientists suggest Corcribed road map This includes goals for Reducing production; Health protect people and Clear measures for global plastic tradeField
“There are obvious and more and more evidence that plastic is seriously threatened by human health. Nevertheless, the approach to the problem of health remains unclear in terms of the contract, ”he said. Dr. Cressida Bauer Deputy Director The revolution of the plastic institute At the University of Portsmouth. “The contract must immediately integrate health protection into its main obligations.”
OR Professor Maria Ivanova From the North -Eastern University in the United States, he also notes that the contract should also include the measurement of trade.
“World trade is the connecting fabric of the plastic economy. Thus, it should also be part of the decision. If we want the contract to be environmentally ambitious and institutionally stable, we must exclude industrial manipulations and green washing. ”
Obstacles from the plastic industry
In accordance with Center for International Environmental Law (Ciel)In negotiations in Busan, South Korea, attended 220 oil industry lobbyists – The largest individual “delegation”, which surpasses even the EU. And all his states are member.
New report about Greenpeace Britain shows that the contract is threatened offensive tactics of leading petrochemical companieswhich made significant efforts to limit the ambitions of the agreement.
Since the beginning of the process in 2022, the company Down, Exxonmobil, Basf, Chevron Phillips, Shell, Sabic and Ineos Sent 70 lobbyists In negotiations.
According to Greenpeace, these representatives promote false decisions such as chemical processing, while strongly react to restrictions on plastic productionField
At the same time, the same companies They increase productionOnly these seven companies produced only these So many plastic tones corresponding to 6.3 million truck waste – i.e. Five and a half trucks every minute From the very beginning of the negotiations.
“Our study shows that those who can lose most by real agreement are those who are most trying to block it,” he said. Anna discsThe author of the exhibition and the campaign for plastic in Greenpeace UK.
“We cannot allow companies to get from pollution to write rules. If we do this, we will ultimately get a condition without teeth. The time has come Lobibists are excluded negotiations and Permanent states are member in the midst of circumstances“
Professor Fletcher adds: “Scientific consensus is clear. The only question is whether the governments will follow him. This is a condition can change the data – But only if we avoid traps of voluntary obligations and technological prepositions. This is our last opportunity to act with a displacement.‘