Nations fail to agree on plastic curbs as oil producers dissent

By Aaron Clark

Nations failed to agree on a treaty to curb plastic pollution after two years of divisive negotiations, as oil suppliers including Saudi Arabia and Russia blocked attempts to limit production.

Almost 200 countries joined a week-long United Nations-backed summit in Busan, South Korea, which concluded in the early hours of Monday without delivering a legally binding deal to address the material’s future.

Negotiators aim to reconvene the talks — which began in 2022 — next year and said there is rising support among the majority of countries on the need to limit the production and consumption of plastics, to restrict harmful chemicals and phase out single-use products like cutlery.

Plastics production is forecast to jump about 60% to 736 million tons a year by 2040, according to the Organization for Economic Co-operation and Development. Recent research has shown how toxic the materials are as they accumulate in marine and terrestrial ecosystems and in human bodies.

“We didn’t achieve what we came for — a binding treaty that addresses the full life cycle of plastics,” Juan Carlos Monterrey Gomez, Panama’s special representative for climate change, said during the talks. “Yet, amidst disappointment, there are small glimmers of progress.”

Credit: Bloomberg

The outcome is the latest setback in efforts to gain consensus on global action to tackle climate and sustainability challenges. A compromise deal at the annual COP29 summit last month was criticized by some as having made insufficient progress in boosting funding available to developing economies, while a UN biodiversity conference early in November ended without agreeing on the creation of a new global nature fund.

Progress in Busan was blocked by a small number of mostly oil-producing nations including Saudi Arabia and Russia that rejected new restrictions, arguing that curbs on output and chemicals fell outside of mandate of the negotiations. 

Opponents insisted the emphasis should be on improving trash collection and recycling capacity. Globally, less than 10% of plastic waste is currently recycled, according to the UN. 

“There should be no problem with producing plastics,” Saudi Arabia delegate Abdulrahman Al Gwaiz said during the meeting’s final plenary session. “The problem is the pollution, not the plastics themselves.” 

Russia’s delegation argued that attempts to impose limits on plastic producers were motivated by economic reasons.

Advocates of tougher action also faced opposition from fossil fuel and chemical industry companies, which sent more than 200 lobbyists to the talks, outnumbering even the 140 representatives from host South Korea, according the Center for International Environmental Law. 

Plastic represents a crucial growth area for some fossil fuel companies looking to offset weaker long-term demand as renewables and electric vehicles erode consumption of fuels. Petrochemicals’ share of total oil demand could nearly double by 2050, according to BloombergNEF. 

About 275 businesses that use plastics, including L’Oreal SA, Starbucks Corp. and 3M Co., offered support for efforts to ultimately end the use of some products and chemicals. 

Communities directly impacted by plastic pollution also called for urgent action to mitigate impacts on public health. Microplastics have been found in human placentas, breast milk, brain tissue and blood.

“The overwhelming majority of countries recognize the severity of the plastic pollution crisis and agree on the need for urgent action,” said Juliet Kabera, director general for the Rwanda Environment Authority and a key negotiator in Busan.