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Existing programs to boost recycling or cut single-use plastic
consumption only "scratched the surface" and a more
comprehensive global plan is required, according to Back to
Blue, a research group run by the Economist Impact think-tank
and the Nippon Foundation, a private philanthropic organization.
The United Nations kicked off negotiations on an agreement to
tackle plastic pollution in Uruguay in November, with the aim of
drawing up a legally binding treaty by the end of next year. As
many as 175 countries have signed up to the talks.
However, if negotiations fail, annual plastic production in G20
countries could rise to 451 million tons by 2050 according to
current rates of growth, Back to Blue said - up nearly
three-quarters from 2019.
"There should be no illusions that the treaty negotiations will
be anything but difficult and treacherous," the research group
said. "The chances of failure - not just that no treaty emerges
but one that is too weak to reverse the plastic tide - are
considerable."
It called for a more aggressive ban on single-use plastic
together with higher production taxes and mandatory schemes to
make firms responsible for the entire lifespan of their
products, including recycling and disposal.
The combined measures could limit annual consumption to 325
million tons by 2050, Back to Blue said, but that would still be
up by a quarter compared to 2019, and the equivalent of 238
million filled rubbish trucks.
Among the G20 countries that have yet to introduce national bans
on single-use plastic products are Brazil, the United States,
Indonesia and Turkey, the report said.
(Reporting by David Stanway; Editing by Kenneth Maxwell)
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