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INC Plastics Treaty Legal Advisory Service Note: Non-Party Provisions

(Publications under review and may be updated prior to 30 September)

The inclusion of ‘Non-party provisions’ in a Plastics Treaty could have an important influence on plastic production within nations that do not become a party to the Treaty.
This would be particularly so if there was a critical mass of State Parties representing a large plastic consumer market to create an incentive for plastic producers in Non-party States to change their overall production practices to meet the requirements of selling into those markets (i.e., to produce less environmentally harmful plastic products, whether for consumption in State Parties or Non-party States).
Non-party provisions could also influence downstream activities within Non-party nations.

This note summarises a range of precedents in multilateral treaties for Non-party provisions, along with advantages and disadvantages of Non-party provisions.

INC Plastics Treaty Legal Advisory Service Note: Considerations for the use of an existing Financial Mechanism to fund Treaty Implementation

(Publications under review and may be updated prior to 30 September)

At INC-2, states expressed divergent views on whether a new dedicated multilateral fund should be established by the new treaty and/or whether existing financing mechanisms should be leveraged, such as the Global Environment Facility – possibly through a dedicated window.

This note considers existing multilateral financial mechanisms that may be suitable for providing finance to assist developing states to implement a plastics treaty, and the advantages and disadvantages of using an existing mechanism as opposed to establishing a new mechanism.

INC Technical Note: World Trade Organization Rules and Key Elements for Consideration in the Context of a Treaty to End Plastic Pollution

Ahead of the second session of the Intergovernmental Negotiating Committee (INC-2) to develop an international legally binding instrument on plastic pollution, including in the marine environment (plastics treaty), there are clear indications that trade restrictions1 and requirements are to be part of the discussions, as indicated by many pre-INC2 State submissions, including non-party trade provisions (see CIEL’s brief on non-party trade provisions).2

Concurrently, some States have raised the question of compatibility between possible provisions of the future plastics treaty and World Trade Organization (WTO) rules.3 Since the inception of the WTO, a number of principles have become part of the core of international trade law under its jurisdiction. Critical elements of these rules include: (i) the non-discrimination principle;4 (ii) the most-favored-nation (MFN) principle5 and (iii) the national treatment principle.6 However, those principles do not preclude or impede States from prohibiting, restricting, or conditioning trade within the plastics treaty. Many multilateral environmental agreements (MEAs) have included trade and traderelated provisions,7 including trade restrictions, and none have triggered WTO disputes.8 In fact, MEAs that contain trade provisions harmonize the approach to an environmental problem, avoiding legal fragmentation and plausible WTO challenges.

This brief examines the question of consistency or compatibility of the incoming plastics treaty with WTO rules, with the understanding that the treaty negotiation process is still very much ongoing. It also provides key recommendations for future framing of the plastic treaty’s terms to address the essential interlinkages between plastic pollution and international trade in advance of INC-2.

INC Policy Brief: Trade Provisions in Multilateral Environmental Agreements-Key Elements for Consideration in the Context of a Treaty to End Plastic Pollution

Plastics trade is an essential component of discussions to develop an international legally binding instrument to end plastic pollution, for three reasons:

1. Plastic feedstocks, polymers, additives, plastic pellets, plastic products, and waste are largely traded internationally1 and the liberalization2 of trade in plastics and their feedstocks supports the rise in production and consumption of plastics, accelerating the plastic crisis;

2. Trade in plastics acts as a conveyor belt for the spread of products, packing and packaging responsible for plastic pollution, including micro- and nanoplastics around the world;3 and

3. Trade in plastics products and products packaged in plastic adds to the waste management burden that importing countries face.

Additionally, Global trade in plastic is immense. Plastics imports and exports in “primary, intermediate and final forms of plastics [represent] up to more than US$1 trillion in 2018 or 5% of the total value of global trade.”4 In 2020, there were 369 million tons of plastics traded - $1,2 trillion in value -, a significant increase from the previous years (UNCTAD, 2022d).

UNEP also identified trade as one of the key elements to address (through the full life cycle of plastics) in its Plastics Science document published in preparation of the first Intergovernmental Negotiating Committee (INC1) (UNEP/PP/INC.1/7).5 As measures for achieving the strategic goals for systems change, UNEP proposed among others to include (i) bans of specific final goods as well as problematic and unnecessary polymers and additives; as well as restrictions and phase out of harmful substances, (ii) taxes/tariffs related to upstream, and midstream activities and products; (iii) removal of fossil fuel subsidies; and (iv) customs duties.6

Given this importance, and to ensure that the goal of ending plastic pollution is successfully achieved, it will be essential (i) to recognize the contribution and role of trade in plastic pollution and (ii) ensure that the plastics treaty includes trade-related measures as core obligations.7

Vanuatu National Waste Audit Analysis Report

This Waste data collation, analysis and reporting for the Vanuatu National Waste Audit Analysis Report was guided by the overarching Regional Waste Data Collection, Monitoring, and Reporting (DCMR) Framework for the Pacific Island Countries and Territories (PICT).

Tuvalu National Waste Audit Analysis Report

This Waste data collation, analysis and reporting for the Tuvalu National Waste Audit Analysis Report was guided by the overarching Regional Waste Data Collection, Monitoring, and Reporting (DCMR) Framework for the Pacific Island Countries and Territories (PICT).

Tonga National Waste Audit Analysis Report

This Waste data collation, analysis and reporting for the Tonga National Waste Audit Analysis Report was guided by the overarching Regional Waste Data Collection, Monitoring, and Reporting (DCMR) Framework for the Pacific Island Countries and Territories (PICT).

Timor-Leste National Waste Audit Analysis Report

This Waste data collation, analysis and reporting for the Timor-Leste National Waste Audit Analysis Report was guided by the overarching Regional Waste Data Collection, Monitoring, and Reporting (DCMR) Framework for the Pacific Island Countries and Territories (PICT).

Solomon Islands National Waste Audit Analysis Report

This Waste data collation, analysis and reporting for the Solomon Islands National Waste Audit Analysis Report was guided by the overarching Regional Waste Data Collection, Monitoring, and Reporting (DCMR) Framework for the Pacific Island Countries and Territories (PICT).

Samoa National Waste Audit Analysis Report

This Waste data collation, analysis and reporting for the Samoa National Waste Audit Analysis Report was guided by the overarching Regional Waste Data Collection, Monitoring, and Reporting (DCMR) Framework for the Pacific Island Countries and Territories (PICT).

Republic of Marshall Islands National Waste Audit Analysis Report

This Waste data collation, analysis and reporting for the RMI National Waste Audit Analysis Report was guided by the overarching Regional Waste Data Collection, Monitoring, and Reporting (DCMR) Framework for the Pacific Island Countries and Territories (PICT).