03 Mar 2022 --- UN member states have unanimously agreed to develop a legally binding treaty to end plastic pollution at this week’s UN Environment Assembly (UNEA 5.2) in Nairobi, Kenya. However, as negotiations on the terms of this historic treaty commence, divisions are forming between environmental NGOs and industry bodies around the flexibility of its implementation. Significantly, the treaty will address the entire lifecycle of plastics from production to disposal. At the same time, the legally binding nature of the agreement has received widespread praise from NGOs through to plastic and chemical industry associations.
