Plastic has a more obvious effect on the environment than any other type of pollution in the modern world. Since burning is the only option to get rid of all this uncollected rubbish, this is particularly true in the Global South, where poor waste management systems guarantee that plastic litter is present everywhere and in the air that people breathe. However, this issue is not limited to the Global South. The industrialized world’s ever-increasing landfills demonstrate that the “reuse and recycle” adage that has long been linked to plastic was primarily corporate public relations. While more plastic continued to be made, sold, consumed, and discarded, it gave the appearance that something was being done to address the issue. Unfortunately, the world missed yet another chance to address plastic pollution this past Friday, August 15, and this time they didn’t even pretend to do it. UN negotiations in Geneva to reach a historic, legally binding worldwide agreement on plastic pollution broke down because nations could not agree on how to address the issue. As states continued to disagree on output caps, the management of plastic products and chemicals of concern, and funding to assist developing nations in implementing the pact, the negotiations entered overtime on Thursday. Some of the delegates spearheading the push for a more robust pact ultimately blamed the breakdown of the negotiations on the oil-producing countries.
Earlier this month, diplomats and climate activists allegedly warned that the US and petrochemical-producing nations would oppose European Union and small island state efforts to limit the manufacture of virgin plastic, which is powered by coal, gas, and petroleum. Despite their disappointment with the discussions’ conclusion, anti-plastic activists have applauded the fact that nations refused to accept a flimsy deal. Even the most powerful UN accords and ideals, however, can be violated, particularly when the greatest military and economic force in the world is not on your side. Even the EU’s extremely environmentally sensitive politicians struggle to live up to their rhetoric, as evidenced by the 2015 Paris climate agreement’s demise, even if the EU may have been at the forefront of the push for a stricter plastics pact. Despite their pledges and due to their continued heavy reliance on fossil fuels, the world is on track to surpass the 1.5 degree Celsius warming limit. Over 400 million tonnes of plastic are produced worldwide each year, and that amount is expected to rise. Merely 9% of this massive quantity will be recycled, whereas 46% would wind up in landfills, 22% will become litter, and 17% will be burned. The Global South will be home to the majority of the latter two. The amount of scientific research demonstrating that plastic is not only difficult to properly dispose of but also actually poisons us through microplastics that are already present in our food, water, and air will continue to expand. Once more, the poorer nations will bear the brunt of this, as they are more likely to rely on inexpensive, single-use plastics and have laxer environmental regulations. The very institution designed to guarantee them justice and prevent the wealthy and powerful from merely stepping on the weak and mighty has once again failed them. In the end, this result indicates that the current global order’s pretenses are as artificial as the plastic it is engulfed in.
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