'Pivotal' talks on UN plastic pollution treaty to begin in Ottawa
A fourth and penultimate round of talks on a United Nations treaty to combat plastic pollution will begin in the Canadian capital Ottawa on Tuesday.
Representatives from more than 170 countries are expected to attend the negotiations, which are scheduled to run until next Monday.
"This negotiation is pivotal," said UN Environment Programme official Jyoti Mathur-Filipp. "It is an opportunity to make significant progress for a robust agreement that would allow future generations to live in a world free of plastic pollution."
Pressure is rising on delegates to reach a draft agreement ahead of the final round of talks in South Korea in December. UN member states set an ambitious target in March 2022 to seek a global treaty by the end of 2024, but the previous meeting in Kenya in November 2023 concluded with little progress made.
According to UN figures, 9.2 billion tons of plastic have been produced since the 1950s - roughly equivalent to the weight of 910,000 Eiffel Towers. The overwhelming majority is not biodegradable and eventually ends up as waste in landfill sites or in the ocean.
Most countries support ambitious and legally binding rules on curbing plastic pollution, according to Florian Titze, an advisor with the German chapter of the global conservation organization WWF. "This majority must prevail," he added.
Germany will be represented in Ottawa by Environment Minister Steffi Lemke.
