Over 100 countries back plastic treaty caps as talks reach fierce finish

Busan, South Korea: Negotiators aiming for an international treaty to curb plastic pollution are set for fierce debate on the last day of scheduled talks, as over 100 countries supportive of a pact that would cap plastic production face off against a handful of oil-producing countries who want it focused just on waste.

The fifth and final UN Intergovernmental Negotiating Committee (INC-5) meeting to yield a legally binding international treaty is set to wrap up in Busan on Sunday, but as of Sunday morning, a final plenary session has not been set.

The hoped-for treaty to come out of these talks could be the most significant deal relating to environmental protection as well as climate-warming emissions since the 2015 Paris Agreement.

As of Sunday, countries remained far apart on the basic scope of the treaty, with one option proposed by Panama - and backed by over 100 countries - that creates a path for a global plastic production reduction target and another which does not allow production caps at all.

Some negotiators said select countries were still not budging on their demands as of Saturday night.

"We have 100-plus countries who are really ambitious. On the other hand we have a small group of countries who are ... basically running down the clock and not moving forward," said Anthony Agotha, the EU's Special Envoy for Climate and Environment.

"We really need to deal with the full lifecycle of plastics because we cannot recycle our way out of this crisis ... We cannot run on one leg," he said.

A smaller number of petrochemical-producing nations such as Saudi Arabia have strongly opposed efforts to target plastic production and have tried to use procedural tactics to delay negotiations.

Saudi Arabia did not have an immediate comment.

China, the United States, India, South Korea and Saudi Arabia were the top five primary polymer producing nations in 2023, according to data provider Eunomia.

Hours remaining

With just a few hours remaining for scheduled talks and consensus seemingly out of reach, some negotiators and observers fear the talks could collapse or be extended to another session.

"We are at a crossroads right now," said Panama's delegation head Juan Carlos Monterrey Gomez on Saturday.

"Postponing this to another meeting would be a fatal wound not only to planetary health, but also to human health... we must come out with an outcome that elevates the fight."

Plastic production is on track to triple by 2050, and microplastics has been found in air, fresh produce and even human breastmilk.

Environmental groups observing the talks criticised a document released by Committee Chair Luis Vayas Valdivieso on Friday that could form the basis of a treaty, for issues such as not adequately addressing chemicals of concern or human health.

Chemicals of concern in plastics include more than 3,200 found according to a 2023 UN Environment Programme report, which said women and children were particularly susceptible to their toxicity.

"We trust that the Chair, with such an overwhelming majority of ambition can lead us to a successful conclusion of INC-5," Agotha said.