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Over 2,500 in-person and virtual delegates from 147 countries, engaged in the first meeting of the Intergovernmental Negotiating Committee (INC-1) to develop an international legally binding instrument on plastic pollution, including in the marine environment. The meeting set the foundation to shape the global instrument to end plastic pollution, with many governments confirming their desire to have an instrument that addresses the full life cycle of plastics, protecting human health and the environment, with special attention paid to the unique circumstances of those countries most in need.
Uruguay’s President Luis Lacalle Pou opened the meeting expressing that knowledge, shared responsibilities and optimism are key elements on the road ahead for negotiators.
Inger Andersen, Executive Director of the UN Environment Programme (UNEP), said at the opening, “We must eliminate and substitute problematic and unnecessary plastic items and ensure that plastic products are designed to be reusable or recyclable. Important that we find our way towards an ambitious multilateral instrument that ensures plastic products are circulated in practice, not just in theory.”
She went on to emphasize: “To get this done, the deal must cover the full life cycle: from considering different types of polymers and plastic products to developing safe and environmentally sound waste management. Crucially, we must ensure that these actions take into account the principles of a just transition so that nobody is left behind.”
Several delegates indicated the instrument should take a combined approach with legally binding core obligations, control measures and voluntary elements to address the entire plastics lifecycle. Furthermore, many delegates emphasized the need to ensure strong monitoring and reporting mechanisms as part of the success of the future instrument.
In summarizing the discussions, INC Chair Ambassador Gustavo Meza-Cuadra (Peru) stated:
“It is clear that we have started to see areas of convergence in the development of the future instrument.”
Jyoti Mathur-Filipp, INC Secretariat Executive Secretary, indicated that the outcome of the first session is a mandate that is deeply crucial in moving towards developing a draft text for the instrument within two years. She stressed the need for an ambitious and meaningful outcome of the INC process.
The deliberations were preceded by a Multi-Stakeholder Forum which opened on 26 November with around 900 participants taking place in person and online.
Adrian Peña, Minister of Environment of Uruguay, told attendees that plastics are one of the biggest examples of unsustainable consumption and production, of “use and throw away,” with harmful implications for human health and the environment and announced the country’s new return deposit system for plastic packaging.
Finally, INC Chair, Ambassador Gustavo Meza-Cuadra called for broad and inclusive participation in this process, without losing sight of the ultimate objective, to protect the environment and human health from the impacts of plastic pollution.
The next session, INC-2, will be held in Paris, France the week of 22 May 2023. Countries are expected to build on the outcomes of Punta del Este, Uruguay and begin negotiating on the options for elements towards an international legally binding instrument, based on a comprehensive approach that addresses the full life cycle of plastics as called for by UN Environment Assembly (UNEA) resolution 5/14.
