Plastic pollution resulting from rampant overproduction of plastics and their lifecycles is irreversible, directly undermines our health, drives biodiversity loss, exacerbates climate change, and risks generating large-scale harmful environmental changes.
A global reporting and monitoring framework is sine qua non for the incoming global plastics treaty.
Initial Considerations for the Intergovernmental Negotiating Committee on the UNEA Resolution 5/14 to End Plastic Pollution: Towards a Legally Binding Global Instrument.
A global treaty (i.e. convention) on plastics will require financial resources to achieve its objectives, and many models exist in other multilateral environmental agreements from which lessons can be taken.
Abandoned, lost or otherwise discarded fishing gear, ‘ghost gear’ is a major contributor to marine plastic pollution and an ever-growing problem impacting marine resources, wildlife and habitats. However, the existing governance framework to address fishing gear requires significant improvement.
Virgin plastic production and consumption have reached unsustainable levels. Overproduction has meant inexpensive virgin plastic is used freely and inefficiently, with unfavourable economics for most recycling, leading to a stark discrepancy between how much plastic is produced and how much is recycled.