Business Coalition for a Global Plastics Treaty is a coalition of nonprofit and for-profit organizations that was formed by the Ellen MacArthur Foundation and World Wildlife Fund to advocate for environmentalist policies within the  United Nations (UN). The Intergovernmental Negotiating Committee (INC) was formed to negotiate with governments globally about provisions to be included in a proposed treaty to address plastic pollution. ¹

Business Coalition for a Global Plastics Treaty’s policy recommendations include the complete elimination of plastic pollution by banning the disposal of non-biodegradable plastics or requiring plastics to be recycled. To achieve this, it suggests using public and private funding of waste management systems and manufacturing to accomplish these end-goals. ²

History

In September 2022, the Ellen MacArthur Foundation and World Wildlife Fund announced the formation of the Business Coalition for a Global Plastics Treaty, which at the time, consisted of 85 nonprofit and for-profit organizations. ³ Its formation was announced at a United Nations General Assembly meeting and in response to the United Nations Environmental Assembly creating an Intergovernmental Negotiating Committee (INC) in March 2022 to negotiate a global treaty to address plastic pollution. ⁴

The INC was created to negotiate the details of a treaty to eliminate plastic pollution in alignment with the UN’S 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development. The resolution to create the states that it acknowledges not all countries may have the ability to meet the standards set by the treaty, that some countries may require financial assistance to eliminate plastic pollution, that ideally there will be mass adoption of the policies proposed by the treaty, and that it is set to finalize the details of the treaty by the end of 2024. ⁵

As of August 2023, the Business Coalition for a Global Plastics Treaty consists of over 130 member organizations, including financial institutions, manufacturing companies, retail stores, brand owners, waste management companies, nonprofit organizations, and business leagues. ⁶

Policy Recommendations

The Business Coalition for a Global Plastics Treaty engages with the negotiators of the United Nations’ Intergovernmental Negotiating Committee on behalf of the members of its coalition. It states that it prioritizes specific policies to be adopted by UN members in their individual jurisdictions through the treaty. It describes its policy priorities as ambitious, as it would require all nations under the treaty to adopt legislation that would ban plastic pollution. ⁷

All the members of the Business Coalition for a Global Plastics Treaty are required to confirm full support of its vision statement, which is the foundation of its advocacy. The vision statement defines its goals for the outcome of the treaty created by the INC. These goals include having countries eliminate plastic pollution, with “near-zero” global plastic pollution by 2060 and for the treaty to be legally binding. It clarifies the definition of plastic to include micro- and macro-plastics and defines pollution as occurring when plastics have a pathway to the so-called natural environment. ⁸

Business Coalition for a Global Plastics Treaty’s vision statement also states that to achieve its desired outcomes, the INC’s treaty must include measures to eliminate the use of non-biodegradable plastics and microplastics, reduce the use of single-use plastics, use public and private funding to recycle plastics, and to end the use of landfills or other methods of destroying used plastics. ⁹

Criticism

After its formation in September 2021, Greenpeace released a press release criticizing the policy recommendations made by the Business Coalition for a Global Plastics Treaty. Greenpeace’s USA Oceans campaign director, John Hocevar, claimed that total elimination of plastic pollution is “not enough.” Alternatively, he argues that plastic use must also be limited beyond transitioning to a requirement that all plastics used be recycled as opposed to disposed, as Business Coalition for a Global Plastics Treaty advocates. ¹⁰

1. Schröder, Patrick, and Rashmin Sagoo. An ambitious global plastics treaty requires transformative alliances, November 18, 2022. https://www.chathamhouse.org/2022/11/ambitious-global-plastics-treaty-requires-transformative-alliances.
2. “Vision Statement: Business Coalition for a Global Plastics Treaty.” Business Coalition for a Global Plastics Treaty. Accessed August 20, 2023. https://www.businessforplasticstreaty.org/vision-statement.
3. “Global Businesses NGOs Endorse a Common Vision for an Ambitious Global Plastics Treaty.” WWF. Accessed August 20, 2023. https://wwf.panda.org/wwf_news/?6469966%2FGlobal-Businesses–NGOs-Endorse-a-Common-Vision-for-an-Ambitious-Global-Plastics-Treaty.
4. Schröder, Patrick, and Rashmin Sagoo. An ambitious global plastics treaty requires transformative alliances, November 18, 2022. https://www.chathamhouse.org/2022/11/ambitious-global-plastics-treaty-requires-transformative-alliances.
5. “Resolution adopted by the United Nations Environment Assembly on 2 March 2022.” United Nations. March 7, 2022. https://wedocs.unep.org/xmlui/bitstream/handle/20.500.11822/39764/END%20PLASTIC%20POLLUTION%20-%20TOWARDS%20AN%20INTERNATIONAL%20LEGALLY%20BINDING%20INSTRUMENT%20-%20English.pdf?sequence=1&isAllowed=y
6. “Endorsers.” Business Coalition for a Global Plastics Treaty. Accessed August 20, 2023. https://www.businessforplasticstreaty.org/endorsers.
7. About. Business Coalition for a Global Plastics Treaty. Accessed August 20, 2023. https://www.businessforplasticstreaty.org/about.
8. “Vision Statement: Business Coalition for a Global Plastics Treaty.” Business Coalition for a Global Plastics Treaty. Accessed August 20, 2023. https://www.businessforplasticstreaty.org/vision-statement.
9. “Vision Statement: Business Coalition for a Global Plastics Treaty.” Vision Statement | Business Coalition for a Global Plastics Treaty. Accessed August 20, 2023. https://www.businessforplasticstreaty.org/vision-statement.
10. “Newly-Formed Business Coalition’s Call for Reduction Is Not Enough; We Need to Limit Plastic Production.” Greenpeace USA, September 21, 2022. https://www.greenpeace.org/usa/news/newly-formed-business-coalitions-call-for-reduction-is-not-enough-we-need-to-limit-plastic-production/.