Countries split on plastics treaty focus as U.N. talks close
▻https://www.reuters.com/business/environment/countries-split-plastics-treaty-focus-un-talks-close-2022-12-03
More than 2,000 delegates from 160 countries, meeting in Uruguay in the first of a planned five sessions of the Intergovernmental Negotiating Committee (INC), aim to craft the first legally binding agreement on plastic pollution by the end of 2024.
The negotiations in the coastal city of Punta del Este pitted a “High Ambition Coalition,” including European Union members, against countries including the United States and Saudi Arabia, which have the world’s top plastic and petrochemical companies.
[...] The High Ambition Coalition of over 40 countries, including EU members, Switzerland, host Uruguay and Ghana, wants the treaty to be based on mandatory global measures, including curbs on production.
[...] That approach contrasts with the country-driven pledges advocated by countries including the United States and Saudi Arabia.
[...] Environmental group Greenpeace said that without a strong treaty, plastic production could double within the next 10 to 15 years, and triple by 2050.