Plastic Treaty Talks Reach Crucial Turning Point at INC-5.1 in Busan

Written by EEFABE-Canada on May 19, 2025

WHAT’S NEXT IN GENEVA SWITZERLAND?

After a week of intense negotiations, high-level diplomacy, and long nights, the fifth session of the Intergovernmental Negotiating Committee (INC-5) on Plastic Pollution concluded in Busan with both progress and pressing challenges. Held from November 25 to December 1, 2024, the session marked 1,000 days since the historic UN Environment Assembly resolution 5/14 launched the world’s most ambitious attempt to end plastic pollution with a legally binding global treaty.

Yet despite the symbolic milestone and unified rhetoric, the talks were marked by significant divides on ambition, scope, and the very principles that should underpin the future treaty.

A Crossroads for Global Plastic Policy

The stakes couldn’t be higher. Without urgent action, plastic leakage into the environment is projected to nearly double by 2040, exacerbating biodiversity loss, climate change, and public health risks. Delegates from over 150 countries, as well as observers from Indigenous communities, NGOs, academia, and industry, gathered to shape a treaty that could reverse this trajectory.

Luis Vayas Valdivieso, Chair of the INC, opened the session by urging delegates to act with “precision, urgency, and unity,” while UNEP Executive Director Inger Andersen called the process “a foundational moment for multilateral environmental diplomacy.” South Korean officials echoed these sentiments, describing plastic pollution as a crisis that threatens future generations.

The Chair’s Text: A Blueprint or a Battle Line?

At the heart of the debate was the Chair’s “non-paper,” a draft text meant to guide negotiations. While many countries accepted it as a working base, others raised concerns about balance and representation. Some argued the text did not fully reflect prior agreements, while others criticized omissions, particularly regarding binding measures on plastic production and problematic chemicals.

Divisions also ran deep on whether to include references to “primary plastic polymers,” the need for global targets, and what constitutes a “just transition” for developing countries and informal waste workers. While some delegates emphasized science-driven, binding rules, others pushed back, citing national sovereignty, economic concerns, and development priorities.

The principle of “common but differentiated responsibilities” emerged as a flashpoint, especially around finance, technology transfer, and capacity-building. Many developing countries stressed the need for new funding sources and a fair transition framework, warning that an ambitious treaty would be meaningless without the resources to implement it.

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Contact Groups, Informal Talks, and Red Lines

Work was split across four contact groups addressing different elements of the treaty: product design, waste management, financial mechanisms, and treaty principles. Progress varied. While some articles saw line-by-line drafting, others stalled amid divergent views.

Informal consultations tried to bridge gaps, focusing on “red lines” for various delegations. Key disagreements remained over scope, compliance, and whether certain plastic product bans should be immediate or phased.

The proposed legal drafting group intended to refine the text into treaty-ready language but did not begin its work due to a lack of consensus on what content to review. The sense of urgency was palpable, but so too was the frustration over procedural roadblocks and slow progress.

What’s Next?

Though INC-5 did not produce a finalized treaty, it concluded with agreement to resume negotiations in 2025 using the Chair’s December 1 text as the starting point. Delegates reaffirmed that “nothing is agreed until everything is agreed,” a nod to the fragile consensus.

As plastic continues to flood ecosystems, this delay has raised alarms among civil society groups, scientists, and island nations already suffering from plastic waste and marine pollution. Yet many remain hopeful that compromise is still possible with sufficient political will.

INC-5 may not have sealed the deal, but it clarified what’s at stake, who’s willing to lead, and how far we still need to go to finally end plastic pollution. The world now looks to the resumed session in August 2025 in Switzerland not as a continuation, but as a decisive moment for global environmental action.

UNEP Intergovernmental Negotiating Committee