Budapest Post

Cum Deo pro Patria et Libertate
Budapest, Europe and world news

US and EU split over plastic pollution

US and EU split over plastic pollution

The two blocs have wildly different ideas on how to get countries and companies to tackle the problem.

An effort to end plastic pollution by 2040 is dividing the United States and the European Union.

The U.S. has been working to get countries to join its "End Plastic Pollution International Coalition by 2040," but so far they aren't biting. Instead, there's growing traction for a rival grouping — the High Ambition Coalition, chaired by Norway and Rwanda — that’s attracted over 50 countries. Members include U.S. allies like Australia, Canada, the United Arab Emirates, France, Germany, the U.K. — and now the EU, which joined Thursday.

The split was on display at an international summit in Punta del Este, Uruguay this week — the first opportunity for diplomats to make progress on a legally binding global plastics treaty by 2024. It follows a landmark agreement by more than 150 countries earlier this year on a global framework aimed at ending plastic pollution.

The EU-U.S. split boils down to a difference over how best to rein in the flood of plastic befouling land, beaches and seas.

According to a document seen by POLITICO, the U.S. State Department favors allowing nations to set their own action plans, dismissing the notion that there can be a “one-size-fits-all approach” to the issue. It's an approach that's not finding much support among other countries but has the enthusiastic backing of the U.S. chemicals lobby.

The rival coalition advocates a more top-down approach of a binding international treaty that uses “bans and restrictions” to eliminate “problematic plastics” along with global baselines and targets.

The dispute is mirrored by deep divisions between companies and campaigners.

Monica Medina, the U.S. assistant secretary for oceans and international environmental and scientific affairs, told POLITICO in an interview that the U.S. stance promotes a “race to the top,” arguing that negotiations centered on global targets for reductions in plastic production could wind up stooping to the “lowest common denominator.”

However, Juliet Kabera, the lead plastics treaty negotiator for Rwanda, put her alliance’s success down to “trusting the science.” She pointed to a recent report by the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development, which estimates plastic waste will triple by 2060. Approximately 8 million tons of plastic enter the world’s oceans each year, while only 9 percent of plastics are recycled globally and 50 percent is landfilled.

“I can never underscore it enough: We are looking for a treaty that is going to make a difference,” she said.

Medina defended the U.S. approach, saying: “We are just as or more ambitious as anyone else in this negotiation.”


There are also divisions among campaigners over how closely they should work with the petrochemical industry

Carsten Wachholz of the Ellen MacArthur Foundation, who is heading to Uruguay as an observer, pointed out that some countries may feel uncomfortable “openly” positioning themselves as the “counterpart to the High Ambition Coalition.” 

A negotiator from a country with the High Ambition Coalition — who requested anonymity to speak candidly on the negotiations — said the U.S. is “struggling to have countries actually wanting to join that coalition.” Washington has put itself “in a bit of a difficult situation with this information leaking; now they're kind of obligated to develop this group,” they added.


Companies and campaigners


The U.S. position aligns with the American Chemistry Council, an industry lobby.

“We see a country-driven approach in which governments and key stakeholders develop locally appropriate solutions as essential to successfully addressing plastic pollution in the environment,” said Stewart Harris, the ACC’s senior director of global plastics policy. The rival coalition would “limit economic growth of developing economies,” he added.

But NGOs are skeptical of that approach. There are also divisions among campaigners over how closely they should work with the petrochemical industry.

The World Wide Fund for Nature and the Ellen MacArthur Foundation on September 21 created a Business Coalition for a Global Plastics Treaty, featuring 80 organizations that calls for cutting plastic production and use through a “circular economy approach” with a treaty that would "set out common global goals and obligations" to be implemented in "all national jurisdictions."

The day of the announcement, Greenpeace USA put out a statement of its own calling the coalition's vision for a plastics treaty “clearly not enough.”

“The coalition has some good things in it, but the companies have consistently said and made positive rumblings about reduction and moving toward reuse but fail in shifting a reliance on single use plastics,” said Graham Forbes, Greenpeace’s global plastics project lead. “We know voluntary corporate commitments will never get there."

Despite their different approaches, both the U.S. and the High Ambition Coalition say they agree on the larger goal of ending plastic pollution by 2040.

Wachholz of the Ellen MacArthur Foundation added that it's unlikely governments will come to blows in Uruguay — next week is the first round of negotiations; countries only agreed on the global framework for negotiations back in March.

Medina said the U.S. has "been having great conversations with lots of governments. I don’t think people have decided which approach they like better. And there’s nothing about the High Ambition Coalition that forecloses our approach. So we don’t see ourselves as isolated at all."

AI Disclaimer: An advanced artificial intelligence (AI) system generated the content of this page on its own. This innovative technology conducts extensive research from a variety of reliable sources, performs rigorous fact-checking and verification, cleans up and balances biased or manipulated content, and presents a minimal factual summary that is just enough yet essential for you to function as an informed and educated citizen. Please keep in mind, however, that this system is an evolving technology, and as a result, the article may contain accidental inaccuracies or errors. We urge you to help us improve our site by reporting any inaccuracies you find using the "Contact Us" link at the bottom of this page. Your helpful feedback helps us improve our system and deliver more precise content. When you find an article of interest here, please look for the full and extensive coverage of this topic in traditional news sources, as they are written by professional journalists that we try to support, not replace. We appreciate your understanding and assistance.
Newsletter

Related Articles

0:00
0:00
Close
Polish MEP: “Dear Leftists - China is laughing at you, Russia is laughing, India is laughing”
Western Europe Records Hottest June on Record
BRICS Expands Membership with Indonesia and Ten New Partner Countries
Elon Musk Founds a Party Following a Poll on X: "You Wanted It – You Got It!"
China’s Central Bank Consults European Peers on Low-Rate Strategies
France Requests Airlines to Cut Flights at Paris Airports Amid Planned Air Traffic Controller Strike
Poland Implements Border Checks Amid Growing Migration Tensions
Emirates Airline Expands Market Share with New $20 Million Campaign
Amazon Reaches Milestone with Deployment of One Millionth Robot
Yulia Putintseva Calls for Spectator Ejection at Wimbledon Over Safety Concerns
House Oversight Committee Subpoenas Former Jill Biden Aide Amid Investigation into Alleged Concealment of President Biden's Cognitive Health
Amazon Reaches Major Automation Milestone with Over One Million Robots
Extreme Heat Wave Sweeps Across Europe, Hitting Record Temperatures
Meta Announces Formation of Ambitious AI Unit, Meta Superintelligence Labs
Robots Compete in Football Tournament in China Amid Injuries
China Unveils Miniature Insect-Like Surveillance Drone
Marc Marquez Claims Victory at Dutch Grand Prix Amidst Family Misfortune
Germany Votes to Suspend Family Reunification for Asylum Seekers
Budapest Pride Parade Draws 200,000 Participants Amid Government Ban
Southern Europe Experiences Extreme Heat
Xiaomi's YU7 SUV Launch Garners Record Pre-Orders Amid Market Challenges
Jeff Bezos and Lauren Sanchez's Lavish Wedding in Venice
Russia Launches Largest Air Assault on Ukraine Since Invasion
Massive Anti-Government Protests Erupt in Belgrade
Iran Executes Alleged Israeli Spies and Arrests Hundreds Amid Post-War Crackdown
Hungary's Prime Minister Criticizes NATO's Role in Ukraine
EU TO HUNGARY: LET THEM PRIDE OR PREP FOR SHADE. ORBÁN TO EU: STAY IN YOUR LANE AND FIX YOUR OWN MESS.
Hungarian Scientist to Conduct 30 Research Experiments on the International Space Station
NATO Members Agree to 5% Defense Spending Target by 2035
NATO Leaders Endorse Plan for Increased Defence Spending
U.S. Crude Oil Prices Drop Below $65 Amid Market Volatility
International Astronaut Team Launched to Space Station
Macron and Merz: Europe must arm itself in an unstable world
Germany and Italy Under Pressure to Repatriate $245bn of Gold from US Vaults
Iran Intensifies Crackdown on Alleged Mossad Operatives After Sabotage Claims
Trump Praises Iran’s ‘Very Weak’ Response After U.S. Strikes and Presses Israel to Pursue Peace
Oil Prices Set to Surge After US Strikes Iran
BA and Singapore Airlines Cancel Dubai Flights Amid Middle East Tensions
Trump Faces Backlash from MAGA Base Over Iran Strikes
Meta Bets $14 B on Alexandr Wang to Drive AI Ambitions
FedEx Founder Fred Smith, ‘Heart and Soul’ of the Company, Dies at 80
Chinese Factories Shift Away from U.S. Amid Trump‑Era Tariffs
Pimco Seizes Opportunity in Japan’s Dislocated Bond Market
Labubu Doll Drives Pop Mart to Status as China’s Most Valuable Toy Maker
Global Coal Demand Defies Paris Accord Goals
United States Conducts Precision Strikes on Iran’s Nuclear Sites
US strikes Iran nuclear sites, Trump says
Telegram Founder: I Will Leave My Fortune to Over 100 of My Children
16 Billion Login Credentials Leaked in Unprecedented Cybersecurity Breach
Senate hearing on who was 'really running' Biden White House kicks off
×