Support Grows to Control Plastic Waste in International Trade Treaty

Global Partnership for Action on Plastic Waste Also Proposed

September 6, 2018. Geneva, Switzerland. The 11th Meeting of the Open-Ended Working Group of the Basel Convention, the world's only international treaty on waste control, concluded with widespread and growing support for a proposal by Norway to add plastic waste to the list of wastes subject to the trade controls under the convention. The proposal is seen as a key mechanism to stem the tide of marine debris and plastic litter. It would add plastic waste to Annex II, a list of wastes for "special consideration" under the Convention that requires notification by exporting countries and consent by importing countries prior to export.