Plastic issue debated at ministerial summit in Paris

Ministers or representatives of sixty countries debated this Saturday, May 27 at UNESCO solutions to the global plastic crisis, a summit organized by the France to give impetus to the delicate negotiations on a future global treaty that resume Monday in Paris.

Plastic pollution in Lake Potpecko in southwestern Serbia, January 12, 2023. (Illustrative image) © Marjan Vucetic / AP

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In 2022, in Nairobi, Kenya, 175 countries reached an agreement in principle to end plastic pollution, with the ambition to develop a legally binding treaty under the auspices of the United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP) by the end of 2024. After technical discussions at the end of 2022 in Uruguay, Paris is hosting the second round of negotiations from Monday 29 to Friday 2 June, out of the five planned. It should make it possible to draw the main orientations, or even a first draft of the text.

Prior to this second round of discussions, a meeting was organized this Saturday at UNESCO headquarters between ministers or representatives of sixty countries. "We discussed the production of plastic, their composition, the fight against microplastics, also the issue of better collection and recycling, and in particular the support of developing countries that sometimes encounter more difficulties in collecting," summarized at the end of the day the French Secretary of State for Ecology Bérangère Couillard at a press briefing.

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We must be careful that the issue of recycling does not replace the debate on reducing plastic production ", had however warned the Minister of Ecological Transition Christophe Béchu, ahead of the debates. This question promises to be a key point of the negotiations as annual production has more than doubled in 20 years to reach 460 million tonnes (Mt). It could triple again by 2060 if nothing is done. However, two-thirds of this global production has a short lifespan and becomes waste to be managed after one or a few uses. 22% are abandoned (landfills, open incineration or discharge into nature) and less than 10% is recycled. "If we increase our recycling rates, but at the same time, we increase our production, we will have gone backwards in solving the problem. So, first we reduce, second, we increase the share of recycling, "added the minister.

This perspective is supported by the High Ambition Coalition, led by Rwanda and Norway and composed of 56 countries, including the European Union, Canada and Chile. Since Friday, Japan, Gabon and the Republic of Mauritius have joined this bloc. And Argentina expressed interest Saturday, according to Bérangère Couillard.

>> Read also: Plastic waste: the recycling sector is developing in France

Reluctant U.S.

But other states, producers or processors of plastics, such as the United States, China and other Asian countries, intend to preserve their industries. "Every country needs to be clear about the goal" of reducing environmental releases to zero by 2040, said U.S. Secretary Jose W. Fernandez, who leads the Paris delegation of U.S. negotiators. But "we should leave it to each country to chart its course" to fulfill this commitment, already made by the G7 countries in April 2023. This means concluding a "flexible" treaty rather than a "prescriber", "without demonizing" plastic, explains Jose W. Fernandez.

African countries recall the polluter-pays principle and call for funds to develop the infrastructure necessary to manage these mountains of waste. "These are heavy investments. You know that if in our countries today, we do not have these infrastructures, it is because the funding is very high. We must therefore seek funding from outside," explains Jean-Luc Assi, Minister of Environment of Congo-Brazzaville.

>> Read also: The SeaCleaners tackles the scourge of plastic pollution in Indonesian waters

The stakes of these negotiations are high, because plastic, derived from petrochemicals, is everywhere: packaging, clothing fibers, construction equipment, medical tools. Two-thirds of the world's plastic production goes into the wild after often a single use. Waste of all sizes ends up at the bottom of the oceans, in the pack ice, the stomachs of birds and even at the top of mountains. Microplastics have been detected in blood, breast milk or placenta.

Plastic also poses a problem for its role in global warming: it accounted for 1.8 billion tons of greenhouse gases in 2019, 3.4% of global emissions, a figure that could more than double by 2060 according to the OECD.

>> Also listen: Roads with plastic in India, an alternative to reduce pollution?

(

And with AFP)

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  • UNESCO
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