Canada has joined a global coalition of countries pushing for an international treaty to address the global plastic pollution crisis. Led by Norway and Rwanda, the group of 20 countries will advocate for rules to reduce plastic production and eliminate plastic pollution by 2040.
The decision comes as the federal government faces two lawsuits from a group of major plastic manufacturers over national rules to reduce plastic pollution, including a recent ban on six single-use plastic items.
World leaders agreed in February to start work on a global treaty to reduce plastic pollution, with official negotiations due to begin this fall. They hope to reach an agreement in two years. Environmentalists warn that any deal must include strict measures, including limits on plastic manufacturing, to be effective.
The new “high ambition” coalition has pledged to “restrict” plastic production, boost efforts to make reusable items more common and improve recycling, and develop more sustainable methods of disposing of plastic waste. It has also said it will push to “eliminate problem plastics” with bans and restrictions on some items.
The cost of a weak treaty is high. According to the Organization for Economic Co-operation and Development, the volume of plastic in the world’s waterways will more than quadruple to 493 million tonnes by 2060 if nothing is done to fix the problem. Plastic consumption is also expected to skyrocket over the same period, driving pollution and sustaining demand for harmful oil and gas extraction.
“Overall, it’s really welcome as an initiative and it’s great to see a group forming to build support around some of the critical elements of the treaty and set our sights on an ambitious goal,” said Christina Dixon, ocean campaign lead. of the Environmental Investigation Agency. . The group is among dozens of environmental and civil society organizations and researchers that have urged countries to implement strict limits on production.
Environment and Climate Change Canada said in a statement that Canada is “committed” to dealing with plastic pollution. The country is pushing for the future deal to be “ambitious, legally binding” and apply to all plastics from the moment they are produced to their disposal. The United States, a major plastic producer and Canada’s largest plastic trading partner, has not joined the coalition.
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“It’s really important that countries, as we go through these negotiations, are honest about what ambitions they have for the treaty,” said Karen Wirsig, plastics program manager for Environmental Defense.
The $558 billion global plastics industry is dominated by a handful of powerful petrochemical companies, which Wirsig said will fight plastics regulations with lawsuits, lobbying and public relations campaigns. A Canadian National Observer The series has followed the tactics, most recently two lawsuits, used by Canada’s plastics industry to push back against efforts to address the problem of plastic pollution.
“(These) companies make their bread and butter by polluting the world with plastic, and they will strongly oppose the treaty,” Wirsig said. “We need a truly united front against these industry scare tactics.”