Guest Newsletter: PLASTICS AT United Nations Environment Assembly 4
P LASTICS AT UNEA4 The United Nations Environment Assembly (UNEA) and several global environmental instruments have taken an interest in plastic pollution, especially marine plastic litter and microplastics, recognising it as a serious and rapidly growing issue of global concern which requires an urgent and global response. An Ad-Hoc Open-Ended Expert Group (AHOEEG) was created and met twice in 2018, reporting back options for continued work that included calls for a full life-cycle approach to the problem of plastic pollution and solutions for both the prevention and elimination of marine litter. Many aspects of how to strengthen coordination and governance were also discussed, with many countries across all regions calling for a legally binding agreement on marine litter and microplastics. Representatives from members of the #BreakFreeFromPlastic movement and broader civil society have been active through UNEA3, the AHOEEG, and now UNEA4 to start conversations about...