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The International Chamber of Commerce (ICC) has called on governments to secure an ambitious, workable, effective and inclusive agreement at the last negotiating round of the Intergovernmental Negotiating Committee (INC-5) in Busan – one that rallies all actors of society, including the business community, in the collective charge to end plastic pollution and that sets the frame and direction for accelerated business action.
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The global business community has a critical role to play in providing the solutions that will be needed to address the challenge of plastic pollution at the required scale and speed.
“However, businesses need an agreement that provides the enabling frameworks and policies to drive innovation and accelerate business action across all sectors and geographies. This will be indispensable for businesses to effectively deliver on the objectives of the agreement and spur impactful change.”
Raelene Martin, Head of Sustainability, ICC
We stand at a critical juncture in the process with one negotiating session left for countries to forge an agreement. The preceding months of intersessional work have been integral to build common ground on critical path issues, however many issues still remain to be resolved.
Efforts have been made by the INC Chair and Ambassador of Ecuador Luis Vayas Valdivieso to sharpen focus on the elements necessary for the instrument to be fully operational and effective and are aimed at streamlining the negotiations to enhance convergence. His latest non-paper is proposed as a basis for negotiation at INC-5 to replace the lengthy compilation text from INC-4, to facilitate progress and make the best use of the limited time for negotiations in Busan.
Ahead of the start of the negotiating session on 25 November 2024, ICC has outlined key business priorities which should be reflected in the future instrument.
They identify four key priority areas, informed and guided by the UNEA Resolution 5/14 mandate:
- Focus on addressing problematic and avoidable plastic applications and products
- Engrain circular approaches at the heart of the instrument
- Promote the role of innovation as a key enabler in achieving the objectives of the instrument
- Establish effective means of implementation for the real economy
The document also highlights the need to understand how trade and trade policies can effectively support a circular economy transition and calls for enhanced cooperation and consultation with the World Trade Organization (WTO), including alignment of future provisions with WTO principles; as well as other frameworks such as the Basel Convention.
“It is essential that at INC-5, countries agree on the key elements for an instrument that is effective, implementable and fit for purpose in addressing plastic pollution. Agreeing on a robust agreement that sets the foundations to effectively deliver on the UNEA 5/14 mandate must remain the North Star for a successful outcome in Busan. This goal is still within reach — collectively, we can and must succeed in delivering an agreement to spearhead the change the planet and people deserve.”
FAQs
Plastic pollution is a global problem, with approximately 7 billion of the 9.2 billion tonnes of plastic produced from 1950-2017 becoming plastic waste, ending up in landfills or dumped. The world produces more than 430 million tonnes of plastic annually, two-thirds of which are short-lived products that soon become waste. Only 9% are successfully recycled.
Plastic pollution can alter habitats and natural processes, reducing ecosystems’ ability to adapt to climate change, directly affecting millions of people’s livelihoods, food production capabilities and social well-being. There is a need for urgent and ambitious action by all stakeholders to address the rapidly increasing levels of plastic pollution globally. It will be essential for governments to forge agreement on an international legally binding instrument by the end of 2024 to set the parameters needed for all actors to meet the collective charge of ending plastic pollution.
During the first intergovernmental negotiating meeting (INC-1) in Punta del Este, Uruguay, in November 2022, discussions by more than 145 countries were used as a basis to develop potential options for elements and direction for the international legally binding instrument.
At the second intergovernmental negotiation meeting (INC-2) in Paris, France, in June 2023, parties secured a mandate to the Chair to prepare a zero draft of the treaty ahead of INC-3.
The third intergovernmental negotiation meeting (INC-3) in Nairobi, Kenya, in November 2023, saw delegates negotiating and drafting additional text to be added to the zero draft with a mandate for the Secretariat to compile a revised zero-draft text which was released in December 2023.
At the fourth intergovernmental negotiation meeting (INC-4) in Ottawa, Canada, in April 2024, delegates advanced critical work on the revised zero draft of the future instrument, and decided to use the compilation of their work as a basis for negotiations at INC-5. They also established an Open-ended Legal Drafting Group, which will begin work at INC-5, to ensure the legal clarity of the new instrument on plastic pollution.
The business community has a critical role to play in providing the solutions that will be needed to address the challenge of plastic pollution at the required scale and speed. As businesses operate across the full value chain of plastics, they will have a key role in implementing the provisions of the future instrument, in particular, circular approaches across the entire plastics life cycle, which will require a coordinated, concerted and holistic approach with respect to product design, reuse/refill, repair and recycling of plastics.
Businesses will also have a role to play Extended Producer Responsibility (EPR) schemes, which are a useful policy tool to improve the efficiency of existing waste management systems.
