170 countries have gathered in Geneva, Switzerland, to negotiate a global agreement on plastic pollution.
The fifth session of the Intergovernmental Negotiating Committee (INC-5.2) follows what was intended to be the last round of negotiations.
The previous meeting in Busan, South Korea, ended without agreement as over 100 nations wanted to cap plastic production while several oil-producing countries were only prepared to target plastic waste.
Climate action non-governmental organisation WRAP is urging negotiators to agree on a legally binding global treaty that tackles plastic pollution across its entire lifecycle.
Through its global Plastics Pact Network, WRAP says it is demonstrating scalable, treaty-aligned solutions that deliver real-world impact.
Together with the Ellen MacArthur Foundation, WRAP is hosting a global side event to highlight how these solutions are already making a difference on the ground.
WRAP is pushing for a comprehensive, legally binding international agreement that standardises global regulations and covers the full plastics lifecycle.
Voluntary initiatives have laid the groundwork, WRAP says, but systemic change requires enforceable commitments.
A legally binding UN treaty tackling the full lifecycle of plastics could be transformative in accelerating the shift to a circular economy…
At least 600 global civil society organisations have signed a manifesto that outlines key demands for a strong global treaty that leads to a ‘significant reduction’ in plastic production.
Ahead of negotiations, the WWF has called on global governments to explore all available pathways to forge a legally binding global treaty that can put an end to plastic pollution.
WWF, supported by evidence from the University of Birmingham’s Plastic Network, is calling for negotiations in Geneva to conclude with a treaty built on specific, binding rules supported by most countries.
Commenting on the start of negotiations, Diane Crowe, Group Sustainability Director at Reconomy, the international circular economy specialist, said: “A legally binding UN treaty tackling the full lifecycle of plastics could be transformative in accelerating the shift to a circular economy and helping businesses lower carbon emissions, close circularity gaps, prevent plastic waste and reduce costs.”
The negotiations follow the release of a peer-reviewed study in the Lancet medical journal found that plastics are a ‘grave, growing, and under-recognised danger’ to human and planetary health.
The world is in a ‘plastic crisis’, it concluded, that is responsible for health-related economic losses exceeding US$1·5 trillion annually with impacts ‘disproportionately’ hitting low-income and at-risk populations.
The study says the principal driver of the crisis is plastic production, which is 200 times higher than in 1950 – increasing from 2 megatonnes (Mt) in 1950, to 475 Mt in 2022.
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