25/12/2024

The fifth session of the Intergovernmental Negotiating Committee to develop an international legally binding instrument on plastic pollution, including in the marine environment (INC-5)

The fifth session of the Intergovernmental Negotiating Committee to develop an international legally binding instrument on plastic pollution, including in the marine environment (INC-5), took place from 25 November to 1 December 2024 at the Busan Exhibition and Convention Center in Busan, Republic of Korea (https://www.unep.org/inc-plastic-pollution/session-5 ).

The core provisions of the draft treaty are reflected in the following articles:

  • Article 3 on products, including the possibility to restrict chemicals in products and to ensure transparency and traceability of chemicals in plastic products;
  • Article 6 on supply, including the possibility to set a reduction goal for plastics production; and
  • Article 11 on setting a financial mechanism that will be crucial to fund the implementation of the treaty, particularly the upstream control measures.

International Pollutants Elimination Network (IPEN) focused on the issue of chemicals and health (for more information on IPEN position: https://stoppoisonplastic.org/blog/portfolio/ipen-quick-views-inc-5/ )

AWHHE representative as the IPEN member organization, followed the negotiations in Contact Group 3, which addressed the following issues: finance, including the establishment of a financial mechanism; and capacity building, technical assistance, technology transfer, including international cooperation on means of implementation.

The progress has been slow and didn’t lead to finalizing a text. The INC decided to suspend the meeting and to resume for a new session of INC-5 in 2025. IPEN member organizations continued their work to pressure governments to have a treaty that is protective of human health. However, the ability of the NGO community to influence was restricted due to unjustified decisions to keep the negotiations behind closed doors, for the final days of the INC. 

Photo by IPEN: Aileen Lucero, EcoWaste Coalition, the Philippines, making the final intervention at INC5 in Busan on behalf of IPEN, with representatives of IPEN member organizations standing behind.

As associate member of the Friends of the Earth International (FoEI), AWHHE representative also actively participated in the work of the FoEI (more information in the FoEI press release https://www.foei.org/un-plastics-treaty-inc-5-negotiations-extended/ ).