Quick Win No. 7
Coordinate multilateral efforts to tackle plastic pollution
The plastics crisis is a major crisis of our time. Plastic production has increased more than 200% in the last decade, and the United Nations estimates that approximately 75% of all plastic produced since 1950 has become waste. The way we produce, use and dispose of materials in the current linear economy is directly linked to plastic pollution. Studies show that a business-as-usual approach would triple the annual flows of plastic into the ocean by 2040. Adopting a circular economy for plastics can be a solution to this crisis but it requires substantial international coordination and alignment.
Global exports of plastics or goods produced with plastic reached 1.2 trillion USD in 2021, doubling in value since 2005. However, there are still “hidden” plastics volumes in international trade that escape the statistics due to deficiencies in the tariff classification rules, which do not distinguish between recycled and non-recycled plastics, and difficulties over border controls. Moreover, the lower cost of primary plastics, associated partly with fossil fuel subsidies, compared to recycled ones, often disincentivizes the consumption of recycled plastics. Although trade in plastic waste is thoroughly regulated by the Basel Convention and its Plastics Amendments, exports of plastic waste and scrap from developed economies to developing and least developed countries that lack the resources to adequately and safely process them continue. Conversely, the implementation of stringent regulations in exports of plastic waste might create barriers for trade in recycled materials, although experts and activists claim that recycling cannot be the sole solution to the plastic pollution crisis. Measures that tackle the upstream part of its value chain, such as a cap on the production of virgin plastics, and the elimination of fossil fuel subsidies, also need to be implemented.
A holistic approach that strikes a balance to address plastics pollution across the whole value chain (upstream, midstream, downstream, including the management of their disposal) needs to be adopted. With that aim, under the auspices of the United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP), countries are negotiating a Global Plastics Treaty that seeks to incorporate circular economy approaches and include provisions to promote sustainable production and consumption of plastics. At the same time, a group of WTO members are leading an Informal Dialogue on Plastics Pollution and Environmentally Sustainable Plastics Trade (IDP) to explore how multilateral trade rules can contribute to these efforts. The participation of the private sector and civil society in these discussions has been key to identifying issues and possible solutions across the life-cycle of plastics.
A circular economy in trade in plastics requires coordination at the multilateral level. It is important that new international rules related to plastic pollution are aligned with multilateral trade rules, but also that the latter have the necessary flexibility to guarantee more circular and sustainable trade in plastics, in line with UN Sustainable Development Goals. WTO members should continue to work closely with the UNEP processes in identifying and promoting agreement on trade policy measures that are conducive to this goal, such as bans on certain products or polymers and the simplification of border measures for alternative and recycled products. A coordinated approach at the international level can help achieve the balance needed to tackle plastic pollution and ensure circular trade in plastics.
