Official name: International legally binding instrument on plastic pollution, including in the marine environment
Citation: UNEA resolution 5/14 (2 March 2022); Intergovernmental Negotiating Committee (INC)
Year / status: Mandate 2022. Not adopted. INC-5.1 (Busan, 2024) and INC-5.2 (Geneva, August 2025) ended without consensus. Informal work continued in 2026; a further formal round has been discussed for 2027.
What it does
UNEA asked governments to negotiate a treaty covering the full life cycle of plastics, including the marine environment. The draft has been fought over production limits, chemicals, finance, and whether decisions can be taken without consensus. A 2026 chair’s “Aid to Negotiations” paper is an informal reference, not agreed law.
Where it applies / status
No jurisdiction yet. If adopted and ratified, it would bind only the states that join. Until then it binds no one.
Documented benefits or intended effects
Intended effect, if a strong treaty existed: cut leakage and, in some countries’ positions, constrain production. That is a negotiating aim. There is no implemented global plastics statute to evaluate.
Caveats
Do not file this under enacted law. Two “final” rounds failed. A chair’s paper is not a treaty. National single-use bans (including the EU Directive in this catalog) are separate instruments.
Sources
UNEP INC hub; UNEA 5/14; UN Geneva news on the August 2025 adjournment.