United Nations member states agreed to “significantly reduce” single-use plastics over the next decade. The pledge came after marathon talks with nearly 200 ministers at the United Nations Environmental Assembly (UNEA) in Nairobi, Kenya. Nations pledged to “address the damage to our ecosystems … including by significantly reducing single-use plastic products by 2030,” according to the summit’s final statement. One hundred and seventy countries have pledged to "significantly reduce" the use of plastics by 2030.

Highlight:

The United Nations Environment Assembly (UNEA) adopted two resolutions piloted by India on addressing single-use plastic pollution and sustainable nitrogen management. This is the first time an India-backed resolution has been adopted at UNEA. India also hosted, in the High-Level Segment of UNEA, a session on 'Global Partnerships: Key to Unlocking Resource Efficiency and Inclusive Green Economies'.

India’s proposal:

An ambitious resolution piloted by India to phase out single-use plastics by 2025, was watered down at the United Nations Environment Assembly (UNEA). At the World Environment Day summit on June 5, 2018, Union Environment Minister had pledged to eliminate single-use plastics from India by 2022. This pushed several States — notably Maharashtra, Tamil Nadu and Himachal Pradesh — to enforce previous commitments to ban plastic bags and similar disposables. The United States led a few countries, including Saudi Arabia and Cuba, in a push to water down the text — resulting in the final declaration to “significantly reduce” plastics by 2030.

Single use plastics:

Single-use plastics, or disposable plastics, are used only once before they are thrown away or recycled. These items are things like plastic bags, straws, coffee stirrers, soda and water bottles and most food packaging. Petroleum based plastic is not biodegradable and usually goes into a landfill where it is buried or it gets into the water and finds its way into the ocean. Although plastic will not biodegrade (decompose into natural substance like soil,) it will degrade (break down) into tiny particles after many years. In the process of breaking down, it releases toxic chemicals (additives that were used to shape and harden the plastic) which make their way into our food and water supply. These toxic chemicals are now being found in our bloodstream and the latest research has found them to disrupt the Endocrine system which can cause cancer, infertility, birth defects, impaired immunity and many other ailments.

Problem:

Some 500 billion disposable plastic bags are used worldwide each year, while one million plastic drink bottles are purchased every minute. Some 8 million tons (8.8 million US tons) of plastic leak into the ocean every year, threatening marine life and smothering reefs.

Sustainable nitrogen management:

The global nitrogen use efficiency is low, resulting in pollution by reactive nitrogen which threatens human health, ecosystem services, contributes to climate change and stratospheric ozone depletion. 

About United Nations Environment Assembly:

The United Nations Environment Assembly is the world’s highest-level decision-making body on the environment. The Environment Assembly meets biennially to set priorities for global environmental policies and develop international environmental law. The United Nations Environment Assembly was created in June 2012, when world leaders called for UN Environment to be strengthened and upgraded during the United Nations Conference on Sustainable Development, also referred to as RIO+20. 

UNEA sessions:

The first and second sessions of the UN Environment Assembly tackled and adopted resolutions on major issues of illegal trade in wildlife, air quality, environmental rule of law, financing the Green Economy, the Sustainable Development Goals, and “delivering on the environmental dimension of the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development”. The Third Environment Assembly took place in Nairobi 4-6 December 2017 Assembly under the overarching theme “Towards a pollution-free planet”. The Assembly addressed five sub-themes: Water Pollution, Land Pollution, Marine Pollution, Air Pollution, and Sound Management of Chemicals and Waste. The Fourth Environment Assembly was held in Nairobi 11-15 March 2019, focusing on the theme “Innovative solutions for environmental challenges and sustainable consumption and production”.