Vietnam supportive of global agreement on plastic pollution
VOV.VN - The fourth session of the Intergovernmental Negotiating Committee (INC-4) on plastic waste was held in Ottawa in Canada on April 23, with the event featuring the participation of negotiators from 176 countries, including Vietnam.
The major goal of this session is to finalise an agreement on a global treaty aimed at eliminating plastic pollution by the end of the year. To achieve this goal, negotiators will have to reach a comprehensive and legally binding compromise on plastic waste.
In his opening speech, Canadian Minister of Environment and Climate Change Steven Guilbeault said that plastic has become a microcosm of consumer culture since the mid-20th century, adding that the world has begun to depend on this harmful culture. He therefore underlined the necessity to forge a new consensus to eliminate this, putting an end to the waste, expense, and harm caused by plastic.
On the threshold of the meeting, Minister Guilbeault said the meeting's goal is to achieve consensus on 60% to 70% of the treaty's content.
As the Vietnamese head delegate, Le Ngoc Tuan, director of the International Cooperation Department under the Ministry of Natural Resources and Environment (MoNRE), stated that the country supports the current approach to tackling plastic pollution. He also noted that to prepare for negotiations in this session and the next one, specific assessments of future impacts when engaging in the agreement are necessary.
As a developing country, the nation seeks a balance where, alongside control measures, consideration should be given to implementation methods, including financial, technological, and capacity aspects, he said.
According to Tuan, Vietnam and other member countries all support building a legally binding global agreement to deal with plastic pollution.
He assessed that this will serve as a legal framework for member countries to develop actions as a means of reducing plastic pollution and collectively addressing environmental challenges.
Statistics indicate that annual plastic production has more than doubled over the past 20 years to 460 million tonnes, with this figure being on track to triple. Only 9% of the total is recycled.
According to the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD), the "contribution" of plastic to global warming is likely to more than double by 2060.
Inger Andersen, executive director of the UN Environment Programme, underlined the urgency for a treaty and specific actions to combat plastic pollution, affirming that time is running out for both finalising a treaty and for the earth's resilience.
