UNEP prepares for upcoming Global Plastics Treaty negotiations in April.

The fourth negotiation for the Intergovernmental Negotiating Committee on Plastic Pollution is taking place on April 23-29 2024 in Ottawa, Canada. This upcoming negotiation will be the fourth of five sessions scheduled working towards developing a legally binding agreement to manage plastic pollution.

These meetings take revolutionary steps for environmental action given the damaging role of plastic on the natural world. Plastics are generated from fossil fuels, typically crude oil. This oil is typically refined and processed into different components—including naphtha, which is crucial to making plastic. Natural gas can also be used to polymerize gas molecules, bonding them into chains that make up the molecular structure of plastic. The mining, fracking, and intense pressure used to extract fossil fuels often leads to air pollution, water pollution, environmental degradation, habitat destruction, and carbon emissions that contribute to global warming.

A crucial part of implementing a circular economy is minimizing the production and use of these disposable, single-use items and materials that are often improperly recycled. The work towards this Global Plastics Treaty is paving the way to a circular economy. Keep up with negotiations by watching livestreams or reading revisions of the current draft text.

Sources: United Nations Environment Programme, British Plastics Federation, Natural Resources Defense Council, PBS