The Road to a Global Plastics Treaty

Delegates at UNEA-5.2 were greeted by artist Ben Von Wong's Giant Plastic Tap. The 30-foot tall installation was created with plastic from Kibera in collaboration with the Human Needs Project.

Our planet is awash in plastic pollution. We’ve found plastic on all 19 of our research expeditions, from the Galapagos Islands to the Arctic. It’s in the water we drink, the fish we eat, and even in our own bodies.

The rate we are continuing to produce, use, and dispose of fossil fuel-based plastic is a systemic threat to the environment, wildlife, human health, and our entire planet.

But now, a global plastics treaty is on the horizon, giving us a glimmer of hope.

On March 2, after a long week of negotiations during the fifth session of the United Nations Environment Assembly (UNEA-5.2), world leaders approved a landmark agreement to create the world's first-ever global plastics treaty. The mandate, titled “End plastic pollution: Towards an international legally binding instrument”, provides a roadmap to develop a legally binding treaty that will address the full life cycle of plastics in all environments and ecosystems, rather than treating plastics as just an ocean issue. 

Hundreds of scientists, including 5 Gyres’ Marcus Eriksen, warned leaders that a plastics treaty must be based on scientific evidence in order to successfully tackle the planetary crisis. Marcus served on the United Nations Environment Programme’s Scientific Advisory Committee for Marine Litter and Microplastics, which concluded that a full life cycle approach is necessary.

The agreement that came out of UNEA-5.2 is being described as the most important environmental accord since the 2015 Paris Agreement on climate change. For the first time, 175 countries are united in recognizing the urgency of stopping plastic at the source. Rather than promoting recycling and cleaning up the world’s plastic waste, the treaty would encompass curbs on plastic production itself. This is the also first time that the role of waste pickers is recognized in an environmental resolution, acknowledging that their expertise is vital to solving the plastic crisis.

It's time to turn off the tap.

"As an organization that has been at the forefront of plastic pollution research for over 15 years, we know that the problem can't be solved by cleanups or recycling. It's not just about the plastic that ends up at sea. It's about the fossil fuels that are extracted to create virgin plastic, and the human health impacts from our daily interactions with the toxic chemicals found in plastic, and the frontline communities that are forced to bear the burden of continued pollution both upstream and downstream. It's a multi-faceted, global issue, and we're pleased with the result of UNEA-5.2. While the effort is far from over, this mandate lays the groundwork for a legally binding, global treaty that addresses the full life cycle of plastics," said Anna Cummins, Co-founder and Executive Director of 5 Gyres.