On September 4, 2023, the United Nations unveiled the Zero Draft of the Plastics Treaty. The Zero Draft text is designed to guide and support the Intergovernmental Negotiating Committee at its upcoming meeting in Nairobi, Kenya in November.
For each concern that Member States have raised during previous international meetings for inclusion in the Treaty (FPF reported), which the Zero draft calls an “element,” multiple options for addressing the element are listed. Additionally, the text outlines the aspect(s) that are shared among options for a particular element. This system allows “Members to select or combine different choices based on their preferences.”
In “Part II of the text, the elements are broadly structured around the life cycle of plastics and plastic products with the aim of addressing plastic pollution.” There are 13 elements in Part II, some containing sub-elements with their own options. Most relevant to the work of the Food Packaging Forum, stakeholders, and collaborators is element Part II.2 – chemicals and polymers of concern.
Option 1 would bind nations “to not allow and to eliminate” chemicals and polymers of concern in plastic production. While option 2 is less strict, instead mandating “to minimize” the use of chemicals and polymers of concern.
Both of these options would require producers and importers of chemicals and polymers of concern “to provide to government authorities, in addition to the information required under Part II.13 on transparency…, complete information about the hazards to human health or the environment associated with the relevant chemical, polymer or product, and related implications for their safe use, recyclability and disposal…”
Option 3 is the least binding, leaving it up to each nation to regulate the presence and use of chemicals and polymers of concern. Nations would share their strategy in individually developed national plans. An analysis by the Global Plastics Policy Centre released in May 2023 raised concerns about the effectiveness of national action plans due to issues like the lack of enforcement mechanisms or internationally inconsistent monitoring metrics (FPF reported).
Regardless, the effectiveness of any of the options in Part II.2 is dependent upon the definition of a chemical and polymer of concern, and how these criteria are applied to create policy.
Potential criteria for the determination of chemicals and polymers of concern are included in a supporting document:
- harmfulness (e.g., EDCs, PMT, vPvM, etc.; FPF reported),
- impeding recyclability (e.g., brominated flame retardants; FPF reported)
- risk of release (e.g., intentionally added microplastics; FPF reported)
- ozone depleting effects
- polymers of concern
- potential migration/release from plastic products
And Zero Draft Annex A lists three options for whether to develop these criteria, create a list of chemicals of concern, and/or whether to use it to design treaty elements.
- Option1. Criteria for the determination of chemicals and polymers of concern; List of chemicals and polymers subject to prohibition or restrictions and applicable control measures (including exclusions and phase-out dates as relevant); and Harmonized information disclosure, marking and labeling requirement
- Option 2. List of chemicals and polymers to be prohibited or restricted; Harmonized information disclosure, marking and labeling requirements
- Option 3. Criteria for the determination of chemicals and polymers with potential for adverse impacts on human health or the environment
The Food Packaging Forum (FPF) is an official stakeholder at the Intergovernmental Negotiating Committee (INC) meetings and participated in the second INC meeting in May and June of 2023 as members of the Scientists Coalition for an Effective Plastics Treaty (SCEPT, FPF reported). FPF and other SCEPT members are also leading PlastChem, a Norwegian government funded project to prioritize plastic chemicals and polymers of concern. The PlastChem report will be out in January 2024. The FPF factsheets on plastics and bioplastics have been translated into French and Spanish to support treaty discussions. INC-3 will take place in Nairobi, Kenya in November 2023, and INC-4 and 5 in Ottawa, Canada and Seoul, South Korea, respectively.
References
UNEP (September 4, 2023). “Zero draft text of the international legally binding instrument on plastic pollution, including in the marine environment.” (pdf).
UNEP (May 23, 2023). “UNEP/PP/INC.2/INF/4, II.B: Additional information linked to potential options for elements towards an international legally binding instrument.” (pdf).
