Peru leads global initiative to fight against plastic pollution and marine litter
Nota de prensaThe UN Environment Assembly approved a resolution promoting the negotiation of an international treaty to combat plastic pollution.
2 de March de 2022 - 6:00 p. m.
Today, the United Nations Environment Assembly (UNEA 5.2), held in Nairobi, Kenya, adopted a resolution based on the Peruvian proposal to negotiate a legally binding international agreement to combat plastic pollution.
The proposal presented by Peru, together with Rwanda, and supported by more than 60 countries, and whose elements were included in the resolution approved by the UNEA, provides for the creation of an Intergovernmental Negotiating Committee to achieve a legally binding treaty to address plastic pollution. This new instrument should be based on a comprehensive approach to prevent and reduce plastic pollution in the environment, addressing the entire life cycle of plastics, from production, consumption and design to prevention, management and waste treatment.
The Executive Director of the United Nations Environment Program (UNEP), Ms. Inger Andersen, highlighted the international relevance of this initiative, which, if concluded, would become the most important international multilateral environmental agreement since the Paris Agreement on Climate Change.
Ambassador Luis Chuquihuara Chil, Permanent Representative of Peru to UNEP, considered the adoption of this resolution as an achievement of Peru's foreign policy and a reflection of Peru's firm commitment to multilateralism and the purposes and principles of the United Nations Charter, at a time when States are facing challenges, such as environmental challenges, which, by their nature and scope, require global solutions.
During Peru's participation in the Assembly, the Vice-Minister of Environmental Management, Mariano Castro, highlighted and thanked the expressions of solidarity and cooperation from various countries and international organizations of the United Nations system in response to the environmental and social disaster that occurred in Peru after the oil spill in Ventanilla in mid-January. In this regard, Vice Minister Castro indicated that the cooperation received so far has provided better strategic and operational capabilities in the management and coordination of the response to the spill of more than 11 thousand barrels of oil on the central Peruvian coast, severely damaging the biodiversity of the area and the neighboring population that depends economically on marine resources.
The Peruvian delegation participating in the UNEA is headed by the Minister of the Environment, who participates virtually and is made up of a delegation with officials from the Ministries of Foreign Affairs and of Environment.
The proposal presented by Peru, together with Rwanda, and supported by more than 60 countries, and whose elements were included in the resolution approved by the UNEA, provides for the creation of an Intergovernmental Negotiating Committee to achieve a legally binding treaty to address plastic pollution. This new instrument should be based on a comprehensive approach to prevent and reduce plastic pollution in the environment, addressing the entire life cycle of plastics, from production, consumption and design to prevention, management and waste treatment.
The Executive Director of the United Nations Environment Program (UNEP), Ms. Inger Andersen, highlighted the international relevance of this initiative, which, if concluded, would become the most important international multilateral environmental agreement since the Paris Agreement on Climate Change.
Ambassador Luis Chuquihuara Chil, Permanent Representative of Peru to UNEP, considered the adoption of this resolution as an achievement of Peru's foreign policy and a reflection of Peru's firm commitment to multilateralism and the purposes and principles of the United Nations Charter, at a time when States are facing challenges, such as environmental challenges, which, by their nature and scope, require global solutions.
During Peru's participation in the Assembly, the Vice-Minister of Environmental Management, Mariano Castro, highlighted and thanked the expressions of solidarity and cooperation from various countries and international organizations of the United Nations system in response to the environmental and social disaster that occurred in Peru after the oil spill in Ventanilla in mid-January. In this regard, Vice Minister Castro indicated that the cooperation received so far has provided better strategic and operational capabilities in the management and coordination of the response to the spill of more than 11 thousand barrels of oil on the central Peruvian coast, severely damaging the biodiversity of the area and the neighboring population that depends economically on marine resources.
The Peruvian delegation participating in the UNEA is headed by the Minister of the Environment, who participates virtually and is made up of a delegation with officials from the Ministries of Foreign Affairs and of Environment.