Global treaty on plastic pollution proves elusive

Negotiators failed to reach an agreement on a legally binding global treaty to combat plastic pollution by the Sunday deadline, with divergence in critical areas remaining unresolved and a "chair's text" issued to continue discussions next year.

The fifth session of the Intergovernmental Negotiating Committee on Plastic Pollution, or INC-5, held from Nov 25 to Dec 1 in Busan, South Korea, was intended to conclude negotiations and finalize the treaty. It brought together more than 3,300 participants, including delegates from more than 170 countries and observers from nearly 450 organizations.

INC-5 builds on four earlier rounds of negotiations that followed a historic 2022 resolution at the resumed fifth session of the United Nations Environment Assembly, which set the goal of developing an international legally binding instrument on plastic pollution, including in the marine environment.