Countries and NGOs Reject Draft Treaty on Plastic Pollution

A new draft treaty aimed at tackling plastic pollution, presented today at the UN Assembly in Geneva, was sharply criticized and rejected by several countries and environmental organizations. The main concern is that the text does not set limits on the production of virgin plastic.

With only 30 hours remaining until the conclusion of nearly three years of negotiations, delegations from countries such as Colombia, Chile, Mexico, Panama, Canada, and the European Union deemed the draft prepared by diplomat Luis Vayas Valdivieso “unacceptable.”

NGOs also opposed the document. Graham Forbes from Greenpeace described the draft as “a gift to the petrochemical industry and a betrayal of humanity.” The Chilean representative pointed out that the text is “clearly unbalanced,” as it places responsibilities solely at the national level and fails to create international cooperation mechanisms to address plastic pollution.

Meanwhile, the International Council of Chemical Associations (ICCA) did not comment directly on the draft but reaffirmed its commitment to supporting an agreement that helps reduce plastic pollution and encouraged governments to continue efforts to finalize the treaty. The organization warned that “if the pursuit of a perfect agreement results in leaving Geneva without consensus, the world will have missed a historic opportunity to tackle global plastic pollution.”

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