Environmental organizations in South Korea are calling on the government to play a more assertive role in pushing for ambitious measures to tackle the plastic pollution crisis. (Image courtesy of Kobiz Media)
SEOUL, Apr. 17 (Korea Bizwire) – As negotiations for a legally binding global plastics treaty enter a crucial phase, environmental organizations in South Korea are calling on the government to play a more assertive role in pushing for ambitious measures to tackle the plastic pollution crisis.
At a news conference in Seoul on April 15, a coalition of environmental groups highlighted alarming projections that the weight of plastic waste in the oceans could surpass that of marine life by 2050 if current trends continue.
“While the necessity to reduce plastic waste is undeniable, our society has been powerless to prevent the situation from reaching a point where plastic outweighs ocean life,” said Son Serah from Reloop, an international NGO leading the transition to a circular economy. “We can no longer afford to delay effective actions.”
The international plastics treaty aims to establish a legally binding agreement to end plastic pollution, considered the most significant global climate accord since the 2015 Paris Agreement.
Three rounds of intergovernmental negotiations since 2022 have agreed to address the full lifecycle of plastics, from production and distribution to usage and disposal.
However, a key point of contention revolves around determining the starting point of this lifecycle.
Oil-producing nations and plastic manufacturers argue that the cycle begins with the small pellets used for manufacturing or at the product stage, advocating for a circular economy approach through recycling.
Environmental groups, on the other hand, maintain that the cycle starts with the extraction of plastic feedstocks from fossil fuels, asserting that production levels must be reduced to curb pollution effectively.
According to the Organization for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD), global plastic production soared from 230 million tons in 2000 to 460 million tons in 2019, with projections reaching a staggering 1.23 billion tons by 2060 if current trends persist. In contrast, only around 9% of plastic waste is currently being recycled.
A coalition of environmental groups highlighted alarming projections that the weight of plastic waste in the oceans could surpass that of marine life by 2050 if current trends continue. (Image courtesy of the Coalition to End Plastic Pollution)
“While plastic chemical recycling projects have been underway since the 1990s in the United States, it is challenging to find a commercially viable process for converting waste plastics into plastic precursors,” said Moon Doun, a policy researcher at the Global Alliance for Incinerator Alternatives (GAIA).
“We must question whether recycling is a fundamental solution to the shared crises of plastic pollution and climate change.”
Environmental organizations have criticized the South Korean government’s role in the negotiations so far as falling short of expectations, given its status as the host of the upcoming fifth intergovernmental negotiations in late November and an early member of the High Ambition Coalition (HAC) for the plastics treaty.
As the world’s fourth-largest synthetic resin producer, South Korea bears significant responsibility in addressing plastic pollution.
Activists pointed out that during the third intergovernmental negotiations, South Korea focused solely on recycling measures, taking a cautious stance on reducing new production due to potential impacts on domestic industries.
“Our plastic industry is labor-intensive and dominated by small and medium-sized enterprises, so reducing production levels would inevitably affect existing workers,” said Yu Sae-mi, an activist with Green Korea.
“As a just transition is a crucial issue in the international treaty, domestic social discussions must also commence.”
Activists are advocating for a robust treaty that includes a commitment to reduce plastic production by more than 75% by 2040.
They urged the South Korean government to adopt a position during the upcoming fourth intergovernmental negotiations in April that premised pollution regulations on reducing plastic production.
“Civil society demands that our government demonstrate leadership to ensure the creation of an effective and robust international plastics treaty, with a more advanced stance than it has shown thus far,” said Jang Daul, a government relations and advocacy specialist at Greenpeace, who moderated the press conference.
M. H. Lee (mhlee@koreabizwire.com)
