As the threat of plastic pollution increases, countries may agree to postpone negotiations to a later date.
Countries negotiating a global agreement to curb plastic pollution have failed to reach agreement, with more than 100 countries advocating limits on plastic production and some oil-producing countries only willing to target plastic waste.
The fifth United Nations Intergovernmental Negotiating Committee (INC-5) meeting in Busan, South Korea was meant to be the final session. The meeting is expected to result in a legally binding global agreement.
If successful, it would mark the most significant global climate pledge since the Paris climate accords in 2015, but the group of nations could agree on Sunday to postpone the talks to a later date.
He accused Saudi Arabia of being an obstacle in particular. The country strongly opposed efforts to reduce plastic production and used procedural tactics to delay progress.
“It is clear that there is still persistent disagreement,” Inger Andersen, executive director of the UN Environment Programme, told the Reuters news agency.
Panama proposed a plan on Thursday that has received significant international support. If adopted, it would establish a pathway for a global production reduction target, but it did not specify what that target would look like. Another proposal did not mention production limits.
Panama’s head of delegation, Juan Carlos Monterrey Gómez, condemned the postponement of talks.
“Every day of delay is a day against humanity,” he said. “Postponing talks will not postpone the crisis.”
Based on current trends, plastic production will triple by 2050.
“Every day that governments allow polluters to continue to flood the world with plastic, we all pay the price. This delay will have dire consequences for people and the planet, mercilessly sacrificing those on the front lines of this crisis,” Graham Forbes, head of Greenpeace’s delegation to the Global Plastics Agreement, said in a statement.
“This week, 100 member states, representing billions of people, rejected a toothless agreement that achieved nothing and stood before the world committing to an ambitious agreement. Now, it’s time for them to stand up and deliver on this promise.
Environmental group GAIA told Reuters there is “little hope that the next INC will succeed where INC-5 will not.”
The postponement comes just days after the tumultuous conclusion of the 29th UN Climate Change Conference (COP29) in Baku, Azerbaijan.
at At COP29, countries pledged $300 billion annually to address climate change. However, this plan falls short of the $1.3 trillion requested by developing countries, which are disproportionately affected by the climate crisis.
