FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE: 13 August 2025

Geneva, Switzerland– The Global Alliance for Incinerator Alternatives has released a statement in response to the Chair’s proposed text to continue negotiations towards a plastics treaty in the final hours of INC-5.2:

“This new text is sending a clear message to the world: we do not care about your health. We do not care about the science. We do not care about human rights. We do not care about your future. We only care about consensus. It ignores the will of the vast majority of Member States and caters to the wishlist of the petro-states and the fossil fuel industry. To the Global South especially, which has worked hard to fight for environmental justice, this text is an insult.  Article 6 on reducing plastic production, which science tells us is the most critical way to solve plastic pollution and has the support of over 100 Member States, has been dropped. In fact, the objective to “end plastic pollution” has been left out of the text completely, and instead this has become a weak, waste management treaty. There is no reference to chemicals in plastic products, transparency, toxic-free reuse systems, the waste hierarchy, and the protection of human health, weakens provisions on Just Transition and a financial mechanism, and the list goes on. GAIA calls on Member States– use your voice, use your power. For the sake of humanity and future generations, reject the text.”

Ana Rocha, GAIA Global Plastics Policy Director