This work is undoubtedly of great interest, especially as we approach the fifth session of international negotiations to finalise the first global treaty to combat plastic pollution in Busan, South Korea.

The study assesses the impact of the eight proposals included in the draft UN treaty to reduce plastic waste, identifying those that would actually bring considerable improvements to the current situation. And, as we always say, the plastic problem should not be tackled from a single perspective, but rather by combining several measures together. Precisely, this study also assesses what could be achieved by combining different measures. According to this study, a good solution would be to combine:

• A limit on virgin plastic production to 2020 levels.
• A high tax on packaging consumption.
• A minimum recycled content mandate of 40%.
• A $50 billion investment in waste management.

It is therefore clear that [the proposal from] the group of countries that includes plastic producers, [which] focuses on strengthening recycling without setting a cap on production, would not be the right strategy. It is clear that a cap on virgin plastic production must surely be the first step to be taken in the global treaty. What should be decided now in Busan is which cap to set.

The paper focuses on ‘mismanaged’ waste, waste that is neither landfilled, incinerated nor recycled. In this context, the authors' predictions show that, if business as usual continues without further intervention, unmanaged plastic waste will double by 2050. The authors model different policy options focused on minimising mismanaged plastic waste, concluding that a combination of four measures can lead to significant reductions in plastic waste. These are: capping plastic production, imposing a packaging tax, increasing the recycling rate and investing in waste management.

The authors recognise that these solutions focus on one component of the problem, and that for there to be reductions in greenhouse gases, the measures must be preventive and be taken further upstream. It should be borne in mind that the impacts of plastic waste are generated not only at the end of a product's life, but throughout its life and that of its precursors. Therefore, if we are to achieve a truly effective Global Treaty on Plastic Pollution in the coming weeks, we need ambitious measures, not only in terms of waste generation and management, but also preventive measures to tackle the triple global crisis: climate crisis, pollution and biodiversity loss.

The time is now, from 25 November to 1 December in Busan, South Korea, at the fifth (and final) negotiating session to develop an international legally binding instrument on plastic pollution, including in the marine environment. Our responsibility is not to miss this opportunity to generate this key management tool for our well-being and that of our entire planet.

The paper focuses on the role of policies to reduce the mass of mismanaged waste, and demonstrates that some of the proposed policies will effectively reduce both the levels of mismanaged waste and levels of greenhouse gas emissions associated with it. This is certainly encouraging, however the other ‘end-of-life’ fates of plastics are immense, and only getting bigger. They also pose significant environmental and human health impacts and the most important and impactful thing we can do is to significantly reduce our use of plastics and improve the safety and sustainability of the plastics that are essential. 

The harm plastics can cause both humans and the environment occurs along its whole lifecycle, not just at end of life once an item has served its purpose, and certainly not only if it has been mismanaged. It is important to remember that every bit of plastic we refuse or don’t voluntarily bring into our lives reduces harm all the way back to the point where fossil fuels are drawn out of the ground to make the plastic polymer. Doing so also reduces the need for all the other chemicals used in plastic production (of which approximately 4000 are known to have negative human health effects), reducing emissions from transport, removing the risk of the plastic or plastic item becoming pollution on its long journey from factory to your door. This reduction in the production and use of plastics also brings with it a reduction in the formation and release of nano- and microplastics, which constitutes mismanaged plastic pollution that can occur during manufacture, use and at the end-of-life, both from managed and mismanaged disposal. This form of plastic pollution is now ubiquitous in all natural environments tested, in our food, water and the air, and increasingly being identified in human tissues. 

We are facing a triple planetary crisis – climate change, biodiversity loss, and pollution. Plastic is a major contributor and amplifier of all three. It is essential that an ambitious and effective treaty, based on scientifically robust evidence, is achieved to ensure a safe and sustainable future for generations to come.