5 days ago
- Politics
- New Indian Express
India resists limits on plastic output
At this point, the Global Plastics Treaty in Geneva seems to be heading the Busan way, unable to resolve disagreements. Barely four days before the second part of the Inter-governmental Negotiating Committee's fifth session (INC-5.2) concludes, there are palpable signs of a thaw in the negotiations, but the words of INC-5.2 Chair and Ecuadorian diplomat Luis Vayas Valdivieso echo loudly: 'The progress that we have made is not sufficient.' The treaty is expected to deliver a legally-binding instrument by August 14 to take on global plastic pollution, but the 180 nations taking part in the negotiations have yet to find common ground. There are 32 Articles in the draft text, and the participating countries must agree on each sentence therein. Much to the contrary, disagreement has been the growing norm with contact groups making very little headway. It has come down to two crucial groups. The 'High Ambition Coalition', which includes the EU, Australia, African as well as Pacific nations, is pushing for cuts in plastic production and consumption, only to meet the pushback from 'Like-Minded Countries' such as Saudi Arabia, China, Russia, Iran, Kuwait and Bahrain. These petro-states, also major producers of plastic polymers, seek downstream measures such as plastic waste management and recycling, citing their economic requirements. The result: Critical areas like production and chemicals of concern have barely been addressed since the negotiations began on August 4. India, on its part, has opposed any global list of products with phase-out timelines, maintaining that the treaty must strictly deal with pollution.
