The White House has confirmed recent reporting about a shift in the U.S. position to support a global plastic production reduction target in the UN Plastics Treaty currently being negotiated. This could be a big win, if it winds up being finalized in the document but there is still important work to be done before we can celebrate!

“The U.S. has indicated a willingness to step up their ambition around the Plastics Treaty, including caps on plastic production,” said Sarah Martik, Executive Director of Center for Coalfield Justice. “We need to make sure this reported shift includes protection from the fracking and cracking that produces all this plastic pollution at the source. Our communities deserve better than empty promises.”

“As long as the U.S. continues exploring pyrolysis, gasification, and other forms of waste incineration under the banner of so-called ‘chemical recycling,’ plastic waste will continue overwhelming our environment and harming our communities,” added KT Morelli, Campaign Organizer for Breathe Free Detroit and a fellow member of the BFFP US EJ Delegation. “We need a Plastics Treaty that centers non-toxic reuse with ambitions for a circular economy.”

Find additional insights from BFFP Members and allies here along with related statements by Greenpeace USA, Center for International Environmental Law (CIEL), Global Alliance for Incinerator Alternatives (GAIA), and more.