Debate over plastic output imperils UN treaty hopes

Doubts rose on sealing a global treaty to curb plastic pollution on the last day of scheduled talks, as over 100 countries pushed to cap production while a handful of oil-producing countries wanted to focus only on plastic waste.

The fifth and final UN Intergovernmental Negotiating Committee meeting to yield a legally binding global treaty was set to wrap up in Busan, South Korea, on Sunday.

However, the plenary session to hammer out a potential outcome did not start until about 1200 GMT.

A treaty could be the most significant deal relating to environmental protection as well as climate-warming emissions since the 2015 Paris Agreement. Countries remained far apart on Sunday on the basic scope of the treaty. An option proposed by Panama, backed by over 100 countries, would create a path for a global plastic production reduction target, while another proposal did not include production caps.

The fault line had been apparent in a revised document released on Sunday by the chair of the meeting, Luis Vayas Valdivieso, which could form the basis of a treaty but remained riddled with many options on the most divisive issues: capping plastic production, managing plastic products and chemicals of concern, and financing to help developing countries implement the treaty.