BUSAN, South Korea –
Negotiations on a treaty to end plastic pollution have concluded in Busan, South Korea without reaching an agreement.
This was supposed to be the fifth and final round to produce the first legally binding treaty on plastics pollution, including in the oceans, by the end of 2024.
Here’s what to know about the talks:
Nations will meet again next year to finish negotiating
After a week of talks and with time running out early Monday, negotiators agreed to meet again next year. They don’t yet have firm plans.
This has been the largest session with more than 3,300 participants at the Intergovernmental Negotiating Committee on Plastic Pollution, including delegates from over 170 countries and representatives of nearly 450 organizations.
“We have tested the resilience of our planet to its limit,” INC Executive Secretary Jyoti Mathur-Filipp said as the meeting closed. “Now is the time for us to push our own limits and honor the trust placed in us.”