Human Rights Watch (HRW) has called on countries negotiating an international anti-plastic pollution treaty to address the role of fossil fuels in plastic production. The group also urged the treaty to include human rights protections. Treaty negotiations began on 28 November 2022 following a United Nations resolution requiring a legally binding instrument to end plastic pollution by the close of 2024. HRW said that every country requires an urgent phasing out of fossil fuels to tackle the plastic crisis and forestall a climate catastrophe.
The group noted that fossil fuel production is the ultimate source of plastic pollution and the primary contributor to the global climate crisis. Plastics pollution is a global threat to human rights, impairing the right to a clean, healthy, and sustainable environment, life, health, food, water, and sanitation, according to the Office of the United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights. HRW has also reported that plastics recycling sector employees are at risk of serious health issues, including brain tumours and cancer. The burden of proving harm caused by plastic waste rests on the employee, often posing a challenge to securing their right to an effective remedy.
Research by the No Burn organisation has shown that the global plastic waste trade has lasting impacts on the health of citizens and the environment in importing regions, which are frequently low-income countries. HRW’s views are shared by countries from around the world. In their pre-negotiation submissions, almost 50% of countries endorsed a full life cycle approach to tackle the plastics crisis. Additionally, 25% of countries agreed to cut plastic production generally.
As co-chairs of the High Ambition Coalition to End Plastic Pollution, Norway and Rwanda have put forward numerous potential provisions, including reducing primary plastic polymers’ production, eliminating and restricting particular plastic polymers and chemicals, enhancing the circularity of plastics in the economy, and eliminating the release of plastics into the environment. The second session of the Intergovernmental Negotiating Committee to develop the Global Plastics Treaty will take place from 29 May to 2 June 2023 at the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organisation Headquarters in Paris. Regional consultations will occur on 28 May 2023.
According to a report by the World Wide Fund for Nature (WWF), oceans are awash with plastic, with more than 220,000 tonnes dumped into them every day. The report warns that by 2040, that figure could rise to have three times the amount entering the ocean today. End Plastic Soup was established in 2019 with the aim of mobilising Dutch companies and organisations to cut worldwide plastic soup down to zero. The group is urging businesspeople to act more rapidly and construct a coherent, joint plan to accomplish zero plastic soup’s essential objectives.
The End Plastic Soup Alliance has enlisted over 70 Dutch companies to create a circular plastic economy over the next few years. Businesses collaborating in the alliance, which includes Unilever and Philips, have agreed to make their plastic waste streams more sustainable. The End Plastic Soup Alliance’s agreement means that businesses collaborate to decrease plastic production, ameliorate plastic waste management, increase recycling rates and offer companies the option to collect plastic that has built up in the ocean to close the plastic loop.
Greenpeace calls for an end to single-use plastic packaging by 2025. In September 2021, a Co-op resolution was proposed that approached suppliers and consumers to commit to plastics reduction targets. Thirty-seven UK organisations, including Nestle and Waitrose, have committed to reducing plastic pollution. France committed to having all plastic packaging recyclable by 2025 in 2018. The European Union requires all member states to recycle at least 55% of plastic packaging by 2030, increasing to 65% by 2035.
Asian countries generate half of the world’s mismanaged plastic waste, with China alone accounting for a quarter of the global total, according to a report from the UN’s Environment Programme. Eighty-eight per cent of plastics in the ocean come from the Asia-Pacific region, according to data from the Ocean Conservancy charity. African countries rely heavily on plastic packaging for goods such as food and water. The UN Environment Programme is launching a scheme to support micro-businesses that utilise discarded plastic in inventive ways. Microbusinesses that repurpose and reuse plastic waste can receive grants and training as part of the scheme.
In conclusion, the HRW has called upon countries involved in ongoing discussions on an international anti-plastic pollution treaty to consider the role of fossil fuels in its production and to include human rights protections in the treaty. The group noted that fossil fuel production is the ultimate source of plastic pollution and the primary contributor to the global climate crisis. Plastics pollution harms human rights, including the right to a clean, healthy, and sustainable environment, life, health, food, water, and sanitation. The No Burn organisation has found that global plastic waste exerts lasting impacts on the health of citizens and the environment in importing regions, which are frequently low-income countries. End Plastic Soup Alliance has enlisted over 70 Dutch companies to end global plastic soup.
In addition, Greenpeace calls for the end of single-use plastic packaging by 2025, Co-op calls on suppliers and consumers to reduce plastic waste, and 37 UK organisations have committed to reducing plastic pollution. France committed to having all plastic packaging recyclable by 2025 in 2018. The EU has mandated that all member states recycle at least 55% of plastic packaging by 2030. The Asia-Pacific region accounts for 88% of plastics in the ocean, with African countries relying heavily on plastic packaging for items such as food and water. The UN Environment Programme is starting a programme to support micro-businesses that creatively repurpose plastic waste and are eligible to receive grants and training.
