By 2050, emissions from plastic are estimated to triple. The UN now creates its first ever global plastic pollution treaty. dw_environment's NiranjanAjit on the latest:
The petrochemical industry is pumping out polluting plastic faster than ever. The UN has made a groundbreaking pledge to try to end the"epidemic" of plastic pollution.World leaders at a United Nations conference in Kenya have agreed to work together in the biggest-ever push to stem the flood ofThe UN Environment Assembly has voted to adopt a resolution that paves the way for a legally binding agreement on plastic pollution by 2024.
The details of the final treaty are yet to be negotiated, but could include a ban on producing new plastic, and will take into account all aspects of plastic pollution — including particles in the ocean, soil and food chain.How big a problem is plastic pollution? Across the world, single-use plastics are cheap enough to use and throw away without thinking about ways to reuse it. Because the material doesn't decompose naturally, plastic that gets intoStill, plastic does slowly disintegrate. It breaks down first into microplastics and then nanoplastics. The names refer to the size of the plastic. Microplastics have been found in some of the most pristine and untouched parts of the planet, from high glaciers to deep oceans, as well as in food.