Human Rights in the Plastic Pollution Treaty | Geneva Toxic Free Talks 2024

About this Event

The current plastic crisis is already poisoning the lives of so many people around the world and is already beginning to suffocate a number of ecosystems, particularly marine ecosystems. There is great hope in the current negotiation of a new treaty on this form of pollution and on the management of the entire plastics cycle. However, to be fully operational, such a treaty must include clear provisions for the protection of human rights. This was the subject of this talk, with the UN Special Rapporteur on toxics and human rights and representatives of  UN Office of the High Commissioner for Human Rights (OHCHR), Center for International Environmental Law (CIEL) and social movements.

Environment @ HRC57

The 57th regular session of the Human Rights Council (HRC57) is taking place in Geneva and online from 9 September to 11 October 2024. With the environment high on the agenda, consult regular updates on key environmental issues at HRC57, side events, and further resources available on our dedicated HRC57 and the environment update.

Geneva Toxic-Free Talks

The Special Rapporteur on toxics and human rights reports every fall to the Council and to the UN General Assembly on issues related to his mandate. The Geneva Toxic Free Talks aim to harness the opportunity of this moment of the year to reflect on the challenges posed by the production, use, and dissemination of toxics and on how Geneva contributes to bringing together the actors working in reversing the toxic tide.

On the sidelines of HRC57, the 2024 edition of the Toxic Free Talks will take place on 19 September 2024, with conferences and discussions, highlighting the work of the Special Rapporteur and of organizations in the struggle for the right to live in a toxic-free environment.

Speakers

Marcos ORELLANA

UN Special Rapporteur on toxics and human rights

Ana Paula DE SOUZA

Human Rights Officer, UN Office of the High Commissioner for Human Rights (OHCHR)

Andrés DEL CASTILLO

Senior Attorney, Environmental Health Program, Center for International Environmental Law

Joshua PRENTICE

Plastic Pollution Thematic Focal Point, Chemicals and Waste Youth Platform, Major Group for Children and Youth

Diana RIZZOLIO

Coordinator, Geneva Environment Network | Moderator

Highlights

Summary

Panel Presentation

Marcos ORELLANA | UN Special Rapporteur on toxics and human rights

• The UN Environment Assembly resolution mentions that every stage of the plastic cycle has adverse implications for human rights. Each of the stages needs to be addressed in this instrument under negotiation.
• A human rights-based approach is indispensable for developing an equitable and effective instrument to address plastic pollution. Solutions need to be grounded in human rights, with explicit language throughout the treaty, not only in the Preamble, but also in sections concerning objectives and implementation mechanisms.
• Preventing harm and reducing plastic pollution are key to sustainable solutions. Instead of only implementing waste management tools to collect trash, there needs to be effective controls on production volumes and what chemicals go into the plastics during the manufacturing process. There must be mechanisms to regulate chemicals that are controlled by national laws and ensure that hazardous chemicals are kept out of plastics.
• Other important principles stemming from human rights include the polluter pays principle, which extends producer responsibility schemes beyond boundaries, and the principle of just transition, which addresses human rights in respect of the rights of waste pickers.
• Framework convention is not the appropriate approach, as it was designed for situations where uncertainties prevented the adoption of clear obligations in addressing threats. Despite existing uncertainties, we have enough science to move forward. We need to establish strong protections, controls, and clear obligations to create a robust and effective instrument.
• The right to science is important, and regulatory measures should align with the best available scientific evidence. As I mentioned at the Social Forum in 2023, the International Tribunal for the Law of the Sea considered that greenhouse gas emissions are a form of pollution under the Law of the Sea Convention. Science is one of the key criteria to identify necessary measures to prevent, reduce and control pollution.
• There is a landscape that establishes human rights obligations and international obligations for the protection of the marine environment. If the Paris Agreement dealt with the existential threat of climate change, articulating human rights in explicit language and understanding the right to development as not only an economic growth but as a meaningful participation, this should also be reflected in the plastics treaty

Ana Paula DE SOUZA | Human Rights Officer, UN Office of the High Commissioner for Human Rights

• Plastic pollution is touching every ecosystem in the planet, interacting with climate change, biodiversity, and other environmental crises.
• Plastic pollution also poses an obstacle to the right to development. In addition to its impacts on the ecosystem, fauna and flora, it also affects human health. While plastic affects everyone, certain groups, such as formal and informal recycling workers and Indigenous Peoples, are disproportionately impacted.
• Plastic is often seen as a cheap solution that supports development, but little attention is given to the costs of its production and use. The externalities are much larger than the economic earnings of the plastic industry.
• It is estimated that developing countries, despite consuming less plastic, incur lifetime plastic costs that are ten times higher than those of developed countries. Another study found that the global health costs of plastic production exceeded $250 billion in 2015, excluding waste management costs.
• The right to a healthy environment is an obligation, including the protection against harmful exposure, right to participation in the design and implementation of plastic policies, and right to access to information. As plastics is a global industry with transboundary impacts, ensuring access to justice is crucial.
• Science that will inform the decision making needs to be neutral in order to effectively translate these obligations into the treaty.
• All member states already have the obligations. If human rights are not mentioned in the treaty, it doesn’t mean that they are inapplicable; it simply means that there will be many decisions made in courts.
• It is very important to have human rights language in the principles, as it will inform the implementations of other obligations in the treaty. We need to see more human rights language within the obligations for international cooperation, which comes with technology transfer, capacity building, and fair, equitable and effective financial mechanisms. This will ensure that countries lacking adequate resources or skills have the chance to monitor implementation and find alternatives to prevent toxics and harm.
• The engagement of rights holders, such as fenceline communities, Indigenous Peoples and waste pickers, need to be truly participatory, allowing them to play a role in informing the COP.
• Access to information is crucial and should not be limited because of industry interest, especially when it poses risks to health or the environment. Issues of plastics and human rights are linked and cannot be separated.
• States need to understand the right to development as a right that must operate within planetary boundaries.

Joshua PRENTICE | Plastic Pollution Thematic Focal Point, Chemicals and Waste Youth Platform, Major Group for Children and Youth

• In small island developing states (SIDS) like Trinidad and Tobago, plastic pollution hampers our rights to enjoy our environment. Due to lack of waste management and sorting, there are many leakages in our marine environment which are harming multiple ecosystems and people. Plastic polymer production is indirectly feeding into the climate change crisis and spiraling into biodiversity loss.
• The ILO estimates that one fifth of the people working on global waste management and recycling globally are not formally employed. Children are also forced to work in these toxic environments instead of going to school, especially in the Global South such as Africa and Asia. There also have been cases of developed countries setting up plastic polymer production companies near impoverished communities that do not have the means to properly advocate for its non-placement. As a result, the toxic fumes and the by-products have negatively affected the residents.
• The text needs to reference vulnerable populations that are disproportionately affected, including youth and indigenous communities. This has already been mentioned in conventions such as the Paris Agreement, Minamata Convention on Mercury, and Global Framework on Chemicals.
• Chemicals of concern represent an important and contentious issue, as we do not know what we are putting into our bodies, and further research is needed to understand the health impacts of different chemical compounds. There needs to be enhanced management of these chemicals throughout their entire life cycle.
• We need to ensure that the public and civil society are able to report for non-compliance and hold them accountable.
• Everyone and every industry are impacted by this treaty. Recent studies have shown how microplastics found in our blood interact with hormones and affect development in children and youth, yet our bodies are being exposed to microplastics in ways that remain largely unknown.

Open Discussion

Open Discussion

Permanent Mission of Iran

• Developing countries developed without any restrictions or regulations. However, today, LDCs and developing countries face restrictions and regulations as they seek to develop. There should be certain barriers imposed on developed countries, for example regarding technology transfer. It is also important to consider differentiated responsibilities, along with efforts to reduce the production and consumption of plastic materials.

Ana Paula DE SOUZA

• Technology transfer is crucial, given that not all states have the capacity to effectively monitor their implementation of control measures.
• We must understand that plastic harms human health, regardless of which borders they come from. In order to develop a successful treaty, we need to consider how to establish a strong and equitable financial mechanism, as well as determine who should contribute more.

Marcos ORELLANA

• My report that was presented to the UN General Assembly examined false or misleading solutions, such as the issue of combustion. This is certainly a problem because it is simply transferring one form of pollution to another, releasing hazardous substances that are not 100% captured.
• Most plastics are not recycled, not only due to lack of technology transfer or capacity, but also because they are often of poor quality or heavily laden with hazardous chemicals.
• There is a proposal to integrate pollutant release and transfer registers into the plastic pollution treaty, as in the Minamata Convention on Mercury. This is a concrete tool that can help channel international cooperation and assistance.
• Extended producer responsibility is less effective when addressing the transboundary impacts of plastic pollution. For example, when an island is inundated with plastics that were produced outside of its jurisdiction, the country of origin of the plastic must be identified so they can contribute financially to dealing with the problem.

Closing

Marcos ORELLANA

• The accountability of producers of this massive global threat needs to be considered.
• It is not only a matter of reduction, production, and prevention of exposure of hazardous chemicals added to plastics, but it is also about the cleanup of the mess that is already in the oceans.
• We have been making progress, and this is another opportunity for humanity to come together to deal with this challenge.

Video

Photo Gallery

Documents

• Invitation
• Presentations made during the event

Links

• Geneva Toxic Free Talks | GEN
• Human Rights, Hazardous Substances, and the Role of Geneva  | GEN
• Human Rights and the Environment | GEN
• Plastics and Human Rights | GEN