Overview: Useful article from The Atlantic

www.theatlantic.com

For a global plastics treaty to succeed, it will need to tamp down production—and recognize the lives and livelihoods that depend on plastic still.

Plastics Treaty Essential Elements:- Reuse. The new legally binding instrument to end plastic pollution will need to consider measures across the full lifecycle of plastics.

Convention on Plastic Pollution - Essential Elements: Reuse

A fundamental challenge with a linear conception of plastic materials and products is not considering the environmental and societal benefits of both reduction and reuse, particularly when designing midstream policy measures. Thus, an essential element of the new global policy framework that needs specific consideration is the role of inclusive and accessible reuse systems in supporting the overarching policy ambitions of plastic pollution elimination.

It is time to move beyond simply banning products in isolation and use the opportunity of the treaty to envision, and create the framework for, a new and more sustainable model of consumption.

Report

Introduction

In March 2022, the United Nations Environment Assembly (UNEA) adopted resolution 5/14 titled “End plastic pollution: Towards an international legally binding instrument.”

The resolution convenes an intergovernmental negotiating committee (INC) to develop a new global agreement on plastic pollution, with an aim to conclude negotiations by the end of 2024 and open the agreement for adoption in 2025. Negotiators now have the daunting task of moving swiftly to agree to measures across the plastics lifecycle

that will move us towards ending plastic pollution. Despite the discussions on product bans, recycling and other potential approaches to managing plastics, thus far there has been scant mention of one of the essential solutions to the plastic crisis: the role of reuse in facilitating a circular economy and protecting natural resources.

Reuse is broadly understood as any operation by which a product or packaging is used again for the same purpose for which it was conceived and is an important measure to reduce resource and energy consumption as well as waste generation. In the context of the agreement, the promotion of well-designed reusable packaging within reuse systems, where take-back and as many rotations as possible are incentivised, needs to be highlighted for its particular relevance to the matter.

Full Report

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Greenpeace: The first plastics treaty negotiation is done: what you need to know

Intergovernmental negotiating committee (INC) on plastic pollution

Plastic pollution and poverty - A briefing to inform negotiations on a United Nations (UN) treaty on plastics

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Joan Marc Simon

22 Sept 2022, 13:49 to bffp-europe

Global Businesses & NGOs Endorse a Common Vision for an Ambitious Global Plastics Treaty

Hi all,

I see business starts to take positions regarding the upcoming Global treaty:

Global businesses across the plastics value chain, financial institutions, and non-governmental organizations (NGOs) came together today to announce a common vision for an effective and ambitious Global Treaty to End Plastic Pollution. The vision will form the basis for future policy engagements with governments through a newly launched Business Coalition for a Global Plastics Treaty which will be convened by the Ellen MacArthur Foundation and WWF.

Their vision statement is interesting and they definitely use our narrative and demands. So we can be happy that on the surface they have come our way but the devil is going to be in the details. Looking forward to see how we manage to take the lead in the plastics conversation –once again!-. J

Has anyone been contacted by the conveners to join the coalition? They claim to be bringing together “key NGOs” so definitely BFFP or/and members have been consulted? ;-)

Joan Marc Simon

he / his

Executive Director

Zero Waste Europe