Solid waste management in the UN Plastics Treaty

Negotiations for an international legally binding instrument on plastic pollution, including in the marine environment (the ‘Plastics Treaty’) cover interventions throughout the entire lifecycle of plastics, with the intended aim of ending plastic pollution. 

However, measures to mitigate plastic pollution via waste management have yet to receive sufficient attention, in part because they are perceived to be supported only by stakeholders who want to divert attention from, and limit, upstream interventions that will reduce plastic production. We argue that effective action on waste management is entirely complementary to action that reduces plastic production, and that both will be needed to eliminate plastic pollution. 

Currently, 20–30 per cent of people globally have no access to a municipal solid waste collection service, so instead they must instead self-manage their waste in an uncontrolled way, either by direct open dumping in the environment or open burning. The lack of emphasis on extending this basic, essential service could result in a collective failure to address many aspects of the plastic pollution crisis.