‘A Devastating Blow’: Plastics Treaty Fails to Reduce Production or Pollution, Critics Say

by Brad Reed

Multiple nations, as well as climate and environmental activists, are expressing dismay at the current state of a potential treaty to curb global plastics pollution.

As The Associated Press reported on Wednesday, negotiators of the treaty are discussing a new draft that would contain no restrictions on plastic production or on the chemicals used in plastics.

This draft would adopt the approach favored by many big oil-producing nations who have argued against limits on plastic production and have instead pushed for measures such as better design, recycling and reuse.

This new draft drew the ire of several nations in Europe, Africa and Latin America, who all said that it was too weak in addressing the real harms being done by plastic pollution.

“Let me be clear — this is not acceptable for future generations,” said Erin Silsbe, the representative for Canada.

According to a report from Health Policy Watch, Panama delegate Juan Carlos Monterrey got a round of applause from several other delegates in the room when he angrily denounced the new draft.

“Our red lines, and the red lines of the majority of countries represented in this room, were not only expunged, they were spat on, and they were burned,” he fumed.