Following the meeting of 175 nations at the United Nations Environmental Assembly in Nairobi on March 2, 2022, representatives from UN Member States endorsed a resolution to “End Plastic Pollution,” and craft an international legally binding agreement by 2024. The resolution, based on three initial drafts dating back to 2016, establishes and charges an Intergovernmental Negotiating Committee with drafting this agreement as a potential instrument to address the full lifecycle of plastics—including production, design and disposal, and the need for enhanced international collaboration for better access to technology.
With treaty negotiations ongoing, an effective agreement must set ambitious yet reasonable international goals, prioritizing economic circularity and working to ban pollution, not essential plastic products. Plastic waste is without a doubt an international concern, but negotiations must consider the essential role that plastics play in supporting the health, safety and well-being of humanity. Limiting plastics production would likely have the opposite effect, encouraging the use of alternative materials that are proven to be more environmentally damaging and lack similar material performance.
Instead, international policies should work to prioritize circularity and encourage innovative waste management methods like advanced recycling technologies. With continued collaboration and cooperation from plastics industry voices and world policymakers alike, a global treaty can achieve the universal goal of reducing unnecessary waste in the environment.
The UN treaty on plastic pollution aims to address plastic waste in the environment and reduce emissions. However, this focus does not address the essential role plastics play towards making products affordable, reducing emissions and helping governments and businesses meet climate goals. Virgin resin production is just as important as recycled material in building a more resilient circular economy. At the same time, investments to increase plastic recycling can reduce plastic waste while still preserving plastics as a critical material. If these facts aren’t considered, the treaty could be less impactful than government and industry are striving for.
In response to plastic waste challenges, the plastics industry is innovating, investing in and supporting advanced recycling technologies to further build the circular economy. Investing in these technologies not only keeps plastics out of the environment, but also reduces overall emissions—all while enabling plastics to be used responsibly. Including these vital technologies in a global plastics treaty would provide a solution to not only reduce plastic waste, but also ensures this material sees a second life as a new product.
As businesses and governments increasingly prioritize climate action and environmental corporate stewardship, the plastics industry will be a key part of making the emissions reduction and environmental goals outlined in the Paris Agreement achievable. A 2020 lifecycle assessment found that plastics perform better from a carbon perspective than alternatives like cotton, glass, metal or bioplastics, all of which have a significantly higher CO2 emissions or water usage. The same study also found that replacing plastic food packaging with alternatives would increase CO2 emissions by nearly 3 percent and more than double energy use.
The success of the Paris Agreement relies on the commitment to effective emission reductions. When compared to common alternatives, plastic outperforms on CO2 emissions, increasing its value in the global marketplace as governments across the world work to meet ambitious climate goals.
Consumers depend on plastics for affordability and are increasingly conscious about costs as higher inflation continues to cause financial strain. As policymakers weigh potential restrictions and regulations on plastics, it is important to consider the financial benefits that plastics provide consumers.
Plastics deliver cost-saving reductions in a variety of ways, including reducing food waste and supporting more efficient building and construction. Plastic containers aid in proper food storage, allowing products to stay fresher for longer and reducing the amount of money spent on replacement goods. Reducing food waste also decreases emissions and resource waste associated with food production, including water and energy. Synthetic fibers in concrete reinforce critical structures and use less material, while affordable plastic water piping reduces human exposure to metal-based toxins. Plastics are also a key part of insulation that keep heating and cooling costs down. Plastic insulation can improve energy efficiency and reduce CO2 emissions, allowing consumers to play an integral role in global emission reductions.
Global treaty negotiations must prioritize circularity and further encourage innovations in waste management, like advanced recycling technologies. These recycling advancements are increasingly available, creating sustainable end-of-life options for items that are not typically accepted in traditional curbside recycling systems to build a more robust circular economy. Advanced recycling further reduces emissions associated with producing plastics and makes virgin-quality polymers that can be used for food-grade packaging and other high-demand applications. Among many others, Honeywell and Avangard recognize the benefit of this technology and are working to address plastic waste with a new advanced recycling plant in Texas that turns end-of-life plastic waste into recycled polymer feedstock for new plastics.
A one-size-fits-all approach to international policy is inefficient for any topic—but especially the universally important focus of plastic waste. UN talks to establish a global plastics treaty must encourage cooperation between world policymakers and the plastics industry to promote a more circular economy and ban pollution, not plastic.