Environment: Last chance: Negotiations on UN Plastic Agreement

Plastic particles already contaminate every habitat of the earth and even people. US researchers found significantly more nano and microplastics in the brain and in the liver of deaths last year than in 2016. In Geneva, a last attempt to unite to reduce plastic pollution is now starting. By August 14th. Negotiate representatives of more than 160 states.

The EU is considered a pioneer in many ways, for example with the ban on disposable plastic such as straws and plastic cutlery. The fact that strict standards are achieved worldwide is considered unrealistic. Why is the agreement for people in Europe still important?

“Because microplastics are spreading over the oceans and air all over the world,” says Moritz Jäger-Roschko from the Environmental Organization Greenpeace. “In addition, we use many plastic products that are not manufactured in the EU – and whose manufacturers do not adhere to EU regulations in case of doubt. In addition, Germany is also the largest plastic murderer in Europe, that is, our garbage is jointly responsible for the garbage problem worldwide.”

The WWF environmental foundation says: “Plastic waste destroys habitats, endangers animals and humans and poison ecosystems.” According to the UN Environmental Program (UNEP), people used 500 million tons of plastic worldwide, almost twice as much as 25 years earlier. 400 million tons of it should quickly end as trash, says Unep. Without measures, the amount of garbage triples until 2060. A quarter of the plastic waste in rivers and seas come according to the knowledge platform “Our World in Data” of plastic bags and bottles.

Micro and nanoplasty is absorbed through food, water and air, says geo-ecologist Stefan Krause, professor at the University of Birmingham. “You can get to the unborn baby in the womb via the placenta.” Deposits in arteries have also been proven. Laminate and carpet floors could particularly strain crawling children. Particles that are excreted could previously release additives in the body. “Many groups of fabric influence the endocrine systems, some are carcinogenic,” says Krause. The body controls complex body functions with hormones via the endocrine system.

The agreement is intended to include production, design and disposal of plastic. Less is to be produced, products should be used and recycled several times as possible, and what is left is to be disposed of in an environmentally friendly manner. How this should work is controversial. “It’s time for courage, not compromise,” says Florian Titze from the WWF. “An agreement on the smallest common denominator will not solve the plastic crisis.”

A number of countries only want agreements to remove waste and no production restrictions. It is also controversial whether only desired goals or clear, binding measures are determined. It is disputed who, for example, contributes to financing for recycling systems in poorer countries: governments or manufacturer or a mixture of both.

More than 100 countries from Antigua and Barbuda to Vanuatu have also spoken out for a strong contract with clear requirements for limiting production, including the EU and many African, Asian and Latin American countries. However, they make up only 30 percent of the market share and a quarter of the world’s population. The approximately 300 companies and financial institutions of the “entrepreneur coalition for an ambitious plastic contract” are also for a “robust contract with global rules and uniform obligations”. China, the country with the largest plastic production, has already planned nationally production restrictions.

Most plastics are made from oil, which is why the oil states in particular prevent an ambitious contract, including Iran, Saudi Arabia, the Gulf States and Russia. They just want to talk about garbage and recycling. The US government under Donald Trump is leaving regulations of all kinds. “As a result, the situation in the negotiations has not exactly simplified,” says negotiator circles. The United States is the largest manufacturer countries of plastic with China – in Europe it is Germany.

If there is an agreement, there would be a diplomatic conference for signing next year. Ratification in the individual countries is likely to take several years. Representatives of more than 160 countries are expected in Geneva, as are hundreds of participants from environmental organizations and industrial lobby associations. Germany is represented with a delegation on site, but the EU is negotiating for all member states.