Delegates from more than 175 countries are in Busan, South Korea, this week to hammer out an environmental deal described as the most significant since the Paris Agreement.
This is the final scheduled round of negotiations for a legally binding Global Plastics Treaty, promised by world leaders two years ago in a historic commitment to ending the crisis of plastic pollution across its lifecycle – including production, design and disposal.
But after four rounds of meetings, in which a small number of fossil fuel-rich countries dug in their heels to delay progress and water down ambition, it is still all to play for in Busan.
State of play on plastic production
On the eve of the negotiations, 1,500 activists marched in Busan and civil society groups delivered a petition of almost three million signatures, demanding a strong treaty that includes plastic production reduction measures.
They are particularly worried because a central point of contention among delegates is whether the treaty should regulate plastic production at all.
“It’s the elephant in the room,” said Swathi Seshadri, oil and gas lead at India’s Centre for Financial Accountability. “The petro-states and petrochemical-producing countries are pushing to keep the ambition low, but a majority of countries do want a strong treaty with upstream measures, including regulating polymer production and chemicals of concern.”
Cartoon courtesy of Break Free From Plastic
While it is the important ‘downstream’ harms of plastic waste that predominate in the public imagination – marine life choked by packaging, microplastics in human placenta and so on – the production of plastic contributes directly to planetary warming and harms human and environmental health.
Environmental Investigation Agency campaigner Jacob Kean-Hammerson explained: “The pollution doesn’t start when plastic misses a bin on the street. As soon as we start to produce plastic, toxic chemicals leak into the environment, causing harm to frontline communities.”
Primary plastic polymers – the building blocks of any plastic product – are made from fossil fuels through energy-intensive refinement processes, and hazardous chemicals are often added to make the materials more flexible or resilient.
“Moment of truth” for plastic pollution as treaty talks get underway
The $712-billion plastic industry is set to double or triple by 2050, which would see plastic production account for up to 31% of the remaining global carbon budget for staying below 1.5 degrees Celsius of warming.
Campaigners want mandatory targets to cap and dramatically reduce virgin plastic production, eliminate single-use plastics, and ban toxic chemicals in all virgin and recycled plastics.
‘Get out of jail free’ card for fossil fuels
Griffins Ochieng, of the Centre for Environmental Justice and Development, told Climate Home: “The controls must be global, obligatory and measurable to be meaningful, otherwise countries in the Global South – that are not major producers of these polymers or chemicals – just have no way they can control what is happening in other places.”
However, some major fossil fuel-producing countries – like Saudi Arabia, Russia and Iran, as well as an ever-increasing number of industry lobbyists – are pushing to exclude plastic production from the treaty altogether.
Kean-Hammerson explained: “Plastics are seen as a ‘get out of jail free card’ for the fossil fuel industry, because they can increase demand for their products even as we take action to reduce demand in the energy sector.”
Campaigners highlight the connection between plastics and fossil fuels at a rally ahead of talks on a new global treaty to end plastic pollution in Busan, South Korea. (Photo by Seunghyeok Choi on assignment for Break Free From Plastic and Uproot Plastics Coalition)
According to Melissa Blue Sky, senior attorney at the Center for International Environmental Law, petro-states’ efforts to obstruct the negotiations extend from the content of the treaty to the procedural elements of the meetings.
Rather than looking to resolve particularly divisive issues through voting, some low-ambition countries have pushed for a consensus-based decision-making approach instead, which would effectively give every country veto power over the treaty text.
As a result, Blue Sky explained, nothing has been finalised in the “non-paper” – a draft treaty text prepared by the meeting’s Chair as a jumping-off point for negotiations – and it lacks any suggested language on plastic production.
“It is highly unusual to be in the final scheduled negotiating meeting and have no agreed text,” Blue Sky added. “This is not a normal situation,” she said, reflecting that “there are extremely far apart visions of what this treaty could be and do.”
Non-toxic reuse and refill
In addition to capping plastic production, environmentalists say a strong treaty should also include legally binding, time-bound targets to scale up non-toxic reuse and refill solutions, accelerating a transition away from single-use plastic.
This could include policies that incentivise a shift to reuse systems, such as single-use plastic bans, and rejecting “false solutions” – techno-fixes that perpetuate business as usual, like waste-to-energy (WTE), whereby plastics are burned to generate power, producing highly toxic ash.
The fact that polluting technologies like WTE have been rejected in the Global North but are widespread in the Global South is “the nature of colonialism today”, CFA’s Seshadri pointed out.
A strong treaty would also look to eliminate waste colonialism, a practice by which higher-income countries offload waste to lower-income countries, where its disposal harms human health and the environment.
Environmental justice
A just transition for workers and communities along the plastics supply chain also needs to be at the core of a strong treaty, green groups argue.
This must include formally recognising waste pickers, who often work in unsafe conditions, and supporting frontline communities suffering from the toxic impacts of plastic production and disposal.
Jo Banner, co-founder of the racial and environmental justice organisation The Descendants Project, lives in one such community: Wallace, a town in the U.S. State of Louisiana, which was established by her ancestors and their peers who had been emancipated from slavery on nearby sugar plantations.
Wallace lies along an 85-mile stretch of land nicknamed ‘Cancer Alley’, where communities live beside some 200 fossil fuel and petrochemical operations – the starting points of plastic production – and suffer some of the highest rates of cancer and other illnesses in the country.
“We’ve been sacrificed for this,” said Banner. “It’s us who have to live on the fenceline of this pollution, in the same way we lived on the fenceline of the plantation.”
“This is not just about disposable products. It’s about disposable people. And when we stop looking at people as being disposable, that’s when we will see real change,” she said.
How a local victory against petrochemicals can spur global action on plastics
Finance for implementation
If delegates do leave Busan with an ambitious, binding and measurable roadmap to reduce plastic pollution, countries will need money to implement it.
How will those funds be delivered – and who will pay?
Campaigners are calling for a ‘polluter pays’ mechanism, where plastic producers would pay a levy on each tonne produced.
However, Kean-Hammerson warned that innovative private finance mechanisms must not come at the cost of public funding.
“[The] Polluter pays [principle] is often thought about in terms of companies – they are the ones putting the polymer and the plastics on the market,” he said.
But donor countries in the Global North should also dig into their pockets, he said, not just to show solidarity on a global issue, but also in recognition of the fact that they export a lot of waste to the Global South and have high levels of production and consumption onshore too.
As the talks continue in Busan, civil society is unwavering in calling for an ambitious, legally binding treaty. The outcome will hinge on whether high ambition countries are prepared to follow through on their public commitment to address the global plastic crisis – and bring others along with them.
Sponsored by Break Free From Plastic. See our supporters page for what this means.
Daisy Clague is a freelance journalist based in London, UK.
The post Production curbs needed for strong global pact on plastic pollution, campaigners say appeared first on Climate Home News.
Production curbs needed for strong global pact on plastic pollution, campaigners say
Climate Change
“Sink or swim”: WA Gov hugely underestimating decline in regional gas demand while sleeping on green exports, new report finds
PERTH, Tuesday 13 October 2026 — A new report from Greenpeace Australia Pacific and Springmount Advisory reveals green commodity exports are an untapped economic opportunity for Western Australia in a declining Asian gas market, while offering a genuine solution for decarbonising Asia.
From Gas to Green: Building Western Australia’s Future State is a comprehensive analysis of the declining gas market in Asia, and the untapped economic opportunity for WA to become a global leader in green commodity exports while driving the regional shift away from fossil fuels.
The report offers key recommendations for the WA Government to support regional decarbonisation through an orderly phase out of gas exports in favour of green iron and other green exports. It comes as global climate leaders from across business, politics and advocacy prepare to meet for the Global Citizen Now: Perth event focused on decarbonising WA.
Key findings:
- Gas demand is falling across WA’s core markets in Asia: Gas demand fell in 2025 and is projected to continue to decline, driven by a combination of global geopolitical factors and domestic concerns.
- Policy shifts in key markets since the war on Iran now prioritise renewables and nuclear over gas: Japan, South Korea and China have legislated energy plans that prioritise renewables and nuclear over gas.
- New WA gas would arrive in a saturated, uncertain Asian market filled with cheaper gas: The US is now the world’s largest liquefied gas producer and plans to double its capacity as it also targets Asian markets.
- Green commodities offer a real solution to sustain WA’s economy: WA can lead Australia’s green commodity exports, which by 2060 could be worth almost a trillion dollars.
- Exporting more WA gas is likely to delay or impede Asia decarbonisation: Despite claims by the gas industry, there is no evidence that WA gas is displacing coal in Asia, and in fact diverts resources from genuine decarbonisation options.
Geoff Bice, WA Campaign Lead at Greenpeace Australia Pacific said: “As our export partners in Asia shift away from expensive and polluting gas, the WA Government has a golden opportunity to pivot our economy to green exports, like green iron, which is the most effective way to help our region to decarbonise.
“The writing is on the wall: gas is in decline, renewables are our future. In this context, it makes zero sense for the government to encourage high risk projects like Woodside’s reckless Browse gas proposal at Scott Reef.
“This report clearly shows that the WA Government faces a choice: sink or swim. They can either allow the gas industry to keep ripping off West Australians and continue propping up its decline, or choose the path that will deliver enormous benefits to the state and the world by becoming a leader in the rapidly expanding green economy.”
Tom Quinn, Managing Director of Springmount Advisory: “Western Australia prospers when it looks to the future and builds for future demand. Twenty years from now, what the world needs is green commodities made using WAs abundant renewable resources. Just like it did with iron ore in the 1950s and gas in the 1970s, WA should look to the future and build what the world will need, not sunsetting industries like gas that are already past their peak.”
-ENDS-
Media contact
Kate O’Callaghan on 0406 231 892 or kate.ocallaghan@greenpeace.org
Lucy Keller on 0491 135 308 or lucy.keller@greenpeace.org
A report from Greenpeace Australia Pacific and Springmount Advisory reveals the untapped green economic opportunity for Western Australia in a declining Asian gas market, which also offers a genuine solution for decarbonisation in Asia.
Is Western Australia clinging to a fading gas industry while a thriving green future passes it by? As major Asian trading partners rapidly pivot away from volatile gas imports toward cheap solar and battery storage, this report exposes a high-stakes choice: risk becoming stranded in an oversupplied fossil fuel market, or harness WA’s unmatched sun and wind to lead the global clean energy transition.
Summary
From Gas to Green: Building Western Australia’s Future State reveals that Western Australia (WA) faces a critical juncture as falling Asian gas demand, geopolitical gas supply volatility and accelerating renewable energy deployment undermine the long-term economic viability of gas exports. By harnessing its world-class wind and solar resources, the report demonstrates that WA can execute an orderly phase-out of gas and pioneer a green commodity export economy that could generate $987 billion in economic value by 2060, create 24,000 ongoing jobs, and drive a 9.6% reduction in global greenhouse gas emissions.
Key Findings
- Gas demand is falling in Asia – WA can no longer rely on gas exports: Gas demand in core Asian markets fell in 2025 and is projected to continue to decline in 2026. Legislated energy plans in Japan, South Korea, and China now prioritise renewables and nuclear over gas.
- Asia is increasing renewables, importing gas just gets in the way: Evidence from markets like Thailand suggests that gas imports are increasingly crowding out cheaper renewable energy investments and battery storage rather than displacing coal, locking in more emissions over time.
- Green commodities offer a real solution to decarbonise Asia – this is a major win for WA: With world-class renewables, WA can lead Australia’s green commodity exports, which by 2060 could be worth almost a trillion dollars ($987 billion) and support a genuine 9.6% reduction in global emissions.
Recommendations to WA government
Recommendation 1: Plan an orderly gas phase-out aligned with a trading partner pivot plan
Implement a managed, orderly phase-out of gas exports aligned with trading partners’ decarbonisation pathways, rather than waiting for demand to collapse, by:
- Developing and implementing a staged phase-out of gas facilities aligned with feedstock supply expiry or typical end of facility lifespans.
- Committing to no new gas development for gas expansion, including Browse and Kimberley fields.
- Developing new, reciprocal trade relationships with existing gas trade partners, structured to progressively replace gas exports with green commodities – integrated with recommendation 2.
Recommendation 2: Develop an integrated green commodity export strategy, positioning WA as a global green iron manufacturing hub
Establish an integrated green commodity export strategy that immediately prioritises green iron development, positioning WA as a global green iron manufacturing hub, by:
- Committing to green commodity export targets to give industry and investors a clear demand signal.
- Prioritising green iron as the lead sector within the broader green commodity strategy, given WA’s iron ore endowment and first-mover potential.
Recommendation 3: Reject false solutions such as carbon dumping (CCS) and blue hydrogen
Reject carbon dumping (also described as carbon capture and storage, or CCS) and blue hydrogen as viable decarbonisation technologies, and prioritise green hydrogen and proven renewables for clean energy and fuel production by:
- Excluding blue hydrogen projects (and CCS-dependent projects) from all government support programs.
- Requiring existing hydrogen-based production (including ammonia, methanol, synthetic fuels) to have clear, near-term transition timelines to switch to green hydrogen production.
What you can do
Together, we can push for a prosperous green future.
You can help by:
- Sending an email to Environment Minister Murray Watt and Prime Minister Anthony Albanese, calling on them to reject Browse.
- Sharing this story to help more Australians understand what’s at stake.
- Encouraging your friends and family to take action.
REPORT: “From Gas to Green” Building Western Australia’s Future State
Cleaner cooking projects in the UN carbon market will have to set aside a share of their credits to insure against the risk that the trees they save are lost to fire, drought or logging, after the market’s regulator rejected calls to exempt the sector.
The requirement is part of a new rulebook that the Paris Agreement carbon market regulator – the Article 6.4 Supervisory Body – approved last Friday for programmes that aim to cut emissions by distributing new and cleaner cookstoves in regions that still burn wood or charcoal for cooking.
These are the UN mechanism’s first rulebooks for cookstoves, one of the carbon market’s most popular credit types and also one of its most criticised for overstating climate benefits.
They consist of two methodologies: one for programmes that aim to cut greenhouse gas emissions by distributing more efficient cookstoves that burn less wood or charcoal, and a separate methodology for projects shifting households to lower-emissions cookers running on electricity or liquid petroleum gas (LPG).
Mkhuthazi Steleki, the South African chair of the Supervisory Body, said “this decision gives cleaner cooking projects a new pathway under the UN carbon market, with clear rules to ensure that each credit represents a real and credible emission reduction”.
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Exemption push rejected
More efficient cookstove projects earn credits based on the amount of carbon they save by preserving trees that would have otherwise been cut down and burned for fuel. But if those trees later burn in a wildfire or are logged, the carbon stored would be released anyway, erasing the climate benefits of the credits.
Several carbon credit developers, conservation NGOs and the UN Environment Programme (UNEP) disputed that cookstove projects face this risk, in what critics described as a “coordinated lobbying campaign”.
They argued that, unlike forest protection schemes, this type of credit represents a “flow” of avoided emissions rather than a “stock” of stored carbon that can be released. They also warned that requiring a buffer would impose disproportionate costs and undermine the financial viability of these activities.
But the UN carbon market regulator was not persuaded by the argument. It decided that projects would have to protect against this reversal risk by handing over a percentage of credits to a so-called “buffer pool” instead of selling them.
‘New paradigm’
The amount of credits to be given up is calculated by applying different methods for natural risks, like wildfires, droughts or hurricanes, and human-caused ones, such as logging or land clearing.
For natural risks, project developers will need to apply local risk values derived from new modelling published by a group of independent scientists.
Campaigners have broadly welcomed the decision. Federica Dossi, an expert at Brussels-based advocacy group Carbon Market Watch, said it sets a new paradigm for calculating reversal risk based on empirical data. “This approach is grounded in science and we hope to see this now being adopted by other carbon crediting mechanisms in the voluntary market,” she added.
Backers claim this method is more rigorous than current practice in the voluntary carbon market, which largely relies on expert guesswork.
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