A global treaty to cut plastic pollution could eliminate four-fifths of the world's plastic waste in less than two decades mainly through far more reuse, recycling and replaced materials, according to a U.N. report.
Doing so would pay off because the annual social and environmental costs of plastic pollution range from US$300 billion to $US1.5 trillion, the U.N. Environment Program reported on Tuesday.
“The way we produce, use and dispose of plastics is polluting ecosystems, creating risks for human health and destabilizing the climate,” UNEP's Executive Director Inger Andersen said. "If we follow this roadmap, including in negotiations on the plastic pollution deal, we can deliver major economic, social and environmental wins.”
Just 9% of the world's 460 million metric tons a year of plastic waste is recycled and 22% is mismanaged, meaning it winds up in landfills, incinerated or leaks into the environment, according to the Organization for Economic Development, which found last year that the world is producing twice as much plastic waste as it did two decades ago.
But if nations and businesses followed the 2040 "roadmap there would be a net growth of 970,000 jobs in developing countries and a net loss of 270,000 jobs in developed countries, UNEP said.
Deal-making ahead
The report comes just weeks before the second session of a UNEP Intergovernmental Negotiating Committee picks up negotiations again from late May to early June at UNESCO's headquarters in Paris.
Norway and Rwanda chair a group of countries formed a "high-ambition" coalition pushing for a treaty. Delegates from 175 nations to the U.N. Environment Assembly voted unanimously last year to devise a treaty that tries to cleanse the world of plastic pollution.
The report says greater reuse of plastic bottles through refills or bulk dispensers and other "deposit-return" or "take-back" arrangements would reduce 30% of the plastic pollution by 2040.
Recycling more would cut another 20% and replacing plastic products with more environmentally friendly materials could bring another 17% cut in plastic pollution, according to UNEP. The rest of the 80% cut could come from eliminating subsidies of fossil fuels using in making plastics.
Andersen said the plan depends on innovation from manufacturers, importers, exporters and governments.
"Governments can deliver a strong deal to end plastic pollution," she said. "Businesses can show innovation and commitment to move away from virgin plastics – starting immediately. The financial sector can put its capital behind the transformation."
