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By Sharon Kimathi, Energy and ESG Editor, Reuters Digital

Hello!

“To be, or not to be: that is the question,” wrote the great William Shakespeare in his play ‘Hamlet’. Prince Hamlet’s soliloquy expressed the character’s internal conflict and philosophical pondering about the nature of existence. Government officials from around the world must channel their inner Hamlet this week in Kenya, as they face a modern dilemma that awaits their decisive action: “To reduce plastic, or manage waste?”

Working with a document called a “zero draft” that lists possible policies and actions to consider, national delegates to the week-long meeting in Nairobi, Kenya, will be debating which of those options to include in what eventually would become a legally binding treaty by the end of 2024, officials involved in the negotiations said.

Officials are bracing for tough negotiations over whether to limit the amount of plastic being produced or just to focus on the management of waste.

Environmental groups said they hoped this week’s talks can focus on the treaty’s substance and move beyond the procedural discussions that stall progress.

“We need a radical rethink of the global plastics economy and cannot get bogged down by derailing tactics and false solutions,” said Christina Dixon of the Environmental Investigation Agency.

Here’s what else is on my radar today:

• How campaigners’ killings hurt environmental protection in Colombia
• BMW says it is looking into Morocco labour, environment issues 
• Three Indian cities among world’s 10 most polluted after Diwali

Climate activists at the Break Free From Plastic Movement March ahead of the third Intergovernmental Negotiating Committee in Nairobi, Kenya. REUTERS/Monicah Mwangi

The world is currently producing about 400 million metric tons of plastic waste every year, with less than 10% of it being recycled, according to the UN Environment Programme, choking landfills and spoiling oceans.

That produced amount is set to surge in the coming decade, as oil companies, which often also produce plastics, look to new sources of revenue amid the energy transition away from fossil fuels.

Today, about 98% of single-use plastic – like bottles or packaging – is derived from fossil fuel, according to the U.N. Environment Programme.

The European Union and dozens of countries, including Japan, Canada and Kenya have called for a strong treaty with “binding provisions” for reducing the production and use of virgin plastic polymers derived from petrochemicals and for eliminating or restricting problematic plastics, such as PVC and others containing toxic ingredients.

“We must change the way we consume, the way we produce and how we dispose of our waste,” Kenyan President William Ruto said. “Change is inevitable. This instrument that we are working on, is the first domino in that change. Let us bring it home.”

The United States, which initially wanted a treaty consisting of national plans to control plastics, has revised its stance in recent months. It now argues that, while the treaty should still be based on national plans, those plans should reflect globally agreed goals to reduce plastic pollution that are “meaningful and feasible,” a U.S. State Department spokesperson said in a statement to Reuters.

That position is opposed by the plastic industry and by oil and petrochemical exporters like Saudi Arabia, who want to see plastic use continue. They argue that the treaty should focus on recycling and reusing plastics, sometimes referred to in the talks as “circularity” in the plastics supply.

Saudi Arabia and other producers are “pushing a ‘bottom up’ approach that makes individual countries responsible for the cleanup, health, and environmental costs of plastics and chemicals while leaving the fossil fuels and plastics industries off the hook,” said Bjorn Beeler, international coordinator of the International Pollutants Elimination Network.

On Saturday, Saudi Arabia launched a coalition with countries including Russia, Iran, Cuba, China and Bahrain called Global Coalition for Plastics Sustainability that will push for the treaty to focus on waste rather than production controls.

On Sunday, a group of 20 international scientists sent an open letter to negotiators asking them to put health at the heart of the talks and aim for a treaty that reduces production volumes of plastics and “mandates proper testing of all chemicals in plastics.”

Newborns are placed in bed after being taken off incubators in Gaza’s Al Shifa hospital after power outage, amid the ongoing conflict, Gaza City, Gaza. Still image obtained by Reuters

As member states gather for negotiations on a potential Global Plastics Treaty, Pietro Bertazzi, policy engagement and external affairs at international non-profit CDP, shares his thoughts on mandatory corporate disclosure on plastics:

“On Monday, the International Negotiating Committee on Plastic Pollution is meeting in Nairobi for what could be a turning point in the global elimination of plastic pollution and waste.

“The third meeting of its kind, this is the first real opportunity for the almost 200 nations working on an international legally binding agreement to enter into substantial discussions. 

“With the Global Plastics Treaty set to be developed by 2024, this week could be a milestone for policy makers to set the direction and engage corporates and investors crucial in driving progress.

“The current regulatory landscape on plastic pollution and waste is fragmented and piecemeal, and yet – despite plastic pollution threatening the planet’s ecosystems and human health – for decades, there has been little transparency.

“There is no time to delay putting an end to global plastic pollution. That’s why CDP is calling for mandatory corporate disclosure on plastics to be made a core element of the Treaty. 

“While it is promising to see it referenced in the draft text, governments must act to ensure disclosure is cemented as a key tenet; without it, policymakers have no way of tracking progress and advancing the common goal of ending plastic pollution.

“As consumption of plastic increases, and greenhouse gas emissions from plastic production are expected to double by 2060, mandatory disclosure on plastics must become non-negotiable once and for all.”

Two Indian cities joined New Delhi to be among the world’s 10 worst cities for pollution on Monday, with smoke heavy in the air a day after revelers let loose with firecrackers for Diwali – the annual Hindu festival of light.

The capital New Delhi took, as it often does, the top spot globally. It had an air quality index (AQI) figure of 420, putting it in the ‘hazardous’ category, according to Swiss group IQAir. But it was also joined in the top 10 by Kolkata in India’s east, which came in fourth with an AQI of 196, while the financial capital of Mumbai was eighth with an AQI of 163.

Satellite image shows plumes of smoke from wildfires in British Columbia and Alberta, Canada, . European Union/Copernicus Sentinel-2 via Pierre Markuse/Handout via REUTERS

From launching carbon dioxide detecting satellites in Canada to a floating solar power plant in Indonesia, today’s spotlight highlights initiatives that leverage technology to combat climate change and contribute to a more eco-friendly future.

Canadian emissions monitoring company GHGSat launched a satellite aimed at detecting carbon dioxide emissions from individual facilities like coal plants and steel mills from space for the first time.

The satellite, named Vanguard, launched from Vandenberg Space Force Base in California, GHGSat said.

Space-age technology is increasingly being used to hold polluting industries accountable for their contributions to climate change. GHGSat’s data is available for sale to industrial emitters who want to reduce their emissions, as well as to governments and scientists.

Vanguard will build on the growing network of satellites that are already spotting plumes of methane, an invisible greenhouse gas that is difficult to detect because it tends to leak from an array of small sources including pipelines, drill sites and farms.

A view shows solar panels of the 192 megawatt peak (MWp) floating solar power plant built on Cirata dam in Purwakarta, West Java province, Indonesia. REUTERS/Willy Kurniawan

Indonesia’s President Joko Widodo inaugurated a 192 megawatt peak (MWp) floating solar power plant on a reservoir in West Java province as part of a drive to increase renewable energy sources and switch away from coal.

The 1.7 trillion rupiah ($108.70 million) project was developed by PLN Nusantara Power, a unit of Indonesia’s state utility company Perusahaan Listrik Negara (PLN) and United Arab Emirates renewable energy company Masdar, a unit of Mubadala Investment Company.

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