What to know about the plastic pollution crisis following the conclusion of treaty talks in South Korea

BUSAN – The nations of the world will do it end the negotiations this weekend a treaty to solve the problem global plastic pollution crisis.

Their meeting ends Sunday or early Monday in Busan, South Korea, where many environmental groups have also gathered to push for a treaty to regulate production volumes and toxic chemicals used in plastic products.

Greenpeace said it increased pressure on Saturday by sending four international activists to Daesan, South Korea, to board a tanker bound for the port to load chemicals used to produce plastics.

Graham Forbes, who leads the Greenpeace delegation in Busan, said the action was intended to remind world leaders that they had a clear choice: deliver a treaty that protects people and the planet, or side with industry and sacrifice the health of every living person and the future of a generation.

Here’s what you need to know about plastics:

More than 400 million tons of new plastic are produced worldwide each year

Over the last 30 years, plastic consumption has quadrupled. Plastic is ubiquitous. Every day, the equivalent of 2,000 garbage trucks full of plastic is thrown into the world’s oceans, rivers and lakes. said the UN. Most countries have agreed to reach the first global, legally binding agreement on plastic pollution, including in the oceans, by the end of 2024.

Without policy changes, plastic production could increase by around 70% by 2040

The production and use of plastics around the world will plateau 736 million tonnes by 2040– reports the Intergovernmental Organization for Economic Co-operation and Development.

Panama is leading efforts to address the exponential growth of plastic production under a treaty supported by more than 100 countries. There is simply too much plastic, said Juan Carlos Monterrey, head of the Panamanian delegation.

“If we don’t include manufacturing in this treaty, it will not only be terribly sad, but the treaty might as well be called the eco-laundry recycling treaty and not the plastics treaty,” he said in an interview. “Because the problem won’t be solved.”

The largest players in the plastics industry are China, the United States and Germany

According to the Plastics Industry Association, China was by far the largest exporter of plastic products in 2023, followed by Germany and the United States.

The association says the three countries together account for 33% of total global plastics trade.

The United States supports including a supply article in the treaty on plastics production, a senior member of the U.S. delegation told The Associated Press on Saturday.

Most plastics end up as waste

Less than 10% of plastics are recycled. Most of the world’s plastic ends up in landfills, pollutes the environment or is burned.

Sarah Dunlop, director of plastics and human health at the Minderoo Foundation, said chemicals were leaching from plastics and “making us sick”.

The International Indigenous Peoples Forum on Plastics hosted an event on Saturday to explore the impact of plastics on the sidelines of the conversation. They want the treaty to fully recognize their rights and the universal human right to a healthy, clean, safe and sustainable environment. Juan Mancias of the Carrizo/Comecrudo Nation in Texas spoke about feeling a spiritual connection to the land.

“Five hundred years ago we had clean water, clean air and no plastic,” he said. “What happened?”

Many plastics are used for packaging

According to the UN, approximately 40% of all plastics are used in packaging. This includes single-use plastic food and drink containers – water bottles, takeaway containers, coffee lids, straws and shopping bags – which often pollute the environment.

The executive director of the UN Environment Programme, Inger Andersen, told negotiators in Busan that a treaty must address the problem.

“Are there any particular plastic items that we can do without that so often find their way into the environment? Are there alternatives to these items? This is an issue on which we must agree,” she said.

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