Context

• The fourth round of Negotiations of the Global Plastics treaty failed to provide a timeline as to when plastic production was to halt. 

About the treaty

• The Global Plastics Treaty is an ambitious initiative involving at least 175 United Nations member nations to eliminate the use of plastics.
• The goal is to finalize a legal document by the end of 2024 with timelines by when countries must agree to curb plastic production, eliminate its uses that create wastage, ban certain chemicals used in its production and set targets for recycling.

Need for a plastic treaty

• Exposure to plastics can harm human health, potentially affecting fertility, hormonal, metabolic and neurological activity, and open burning of plastics contributes to air pollution.
• By 2050 greenhouse gas emissions associated with plastic production, use and disposal would account for 15 percent of allowed emissions, under the goal of limiting global warming to 1.5°C.
• More than 800 marine and coastal species are affected by this pollution through ingestion, entanglement, and other dangers.
• Some 11 million tonnes of plastic waste flow annually into the oceans. This may triple by 2040.

Highlights of the meeting

• Oil producing and refining countries such as Saudi Arabia, the United States, Russia, India and Iran are reluctant about hard deadlines to eliminate plastic production. 
• A coalition of African countries, supported by several European nations, is in favour of a year, around 2040, to ensure that a timeline for reduction is in effect.
• India regards that a legally binding instrument to end the plastic pollution must also address “availability, accessibility, affordability of alternatives including cost implications and specifying arrangements for capacity building, technical assistance, technology transfer, and financial assistance. 

Conclusion

• Developing countries often bear a disproportionate burden of plastic pollution due to inadequate waste management systems. A treaty could support capacity building and technology transfer to help these countries manage plastic waste more effectively.