Posted on July, 28 2025

• Ahead of the final global plastics treaty negotiations (INC-5.2), WWF is calling for Member States to utilise all available procedural pathways, including the option of voting or forging a majority coalition to get an ambitious treaty over the line, as it is clear that a small minority of countries will continue to block the adoption of a meaningful treaty if consensus is sought;
• Plastic pollution poses a risk to all life on our planet, and requires a global solution in the form of a binding treaty with global obligations. If we fail to achieve this at INC 5.2, we risk locking in a high-pollution future that will be far more difficult and costly to reverse;
• WWF’s new report, conducted together with the University of Birmingham, highlights the growing health risks posed by micro- and nanoplastic and toxic chemicals, particularly how they could increase the risk of serious health issues, including cancer and infertility impairments.

GLAND, Switzerland (28 July 2025) - Next week, governments from around the world will meet in Geneva for the final global plastics treaty negotiations (INC-5.2). WWF calls on them to utilise all available pathways to finally make good on their commitments to forge a strong, legally-binding global treaty that can put an end to the plastic pollution crisis. Otherwise, they risk going home with a weak, toothless treaty that will only lock in harm to their citizens and future generations. 

Previous attempts to finalise a global plastic pollution treaty have been marred by a failure to conclude by consensus. With a small minority of countries refusing to accept the science and obstructing meaningful progress, countries need to now recognise that a strong and effective treaty through formal consensus is unlikely, nor the only pathway. 

Countries can, and should, exercise legitimate, well-established procedural pathways, including voting on a new treaty text (notably used for the adoption of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights and UN Convention on the Law of the Sea) or forming a majority coalition of ambitious countries to adopt the treaty outside of the INC process. 

“In a world of shifting politics, these negotiations are on a knife edge. Oil-producing countries have been using consensus not to build agreement, but to undermine and sabotage it. This is not multilateralism. It’s obstructionism,” said Zaynab Sadan, Global Plastics Policy Lead, WWF.

“But no consensus doesn’t have to mean deadlock. The ambitious majority must now forge their own path to a meaningful treaty through voting or forming a majority coalition. By rejecting bad-faith obstruction and leveraging their strength in numbers, the ambitious majority can build a treaty that helps protect people now and for generations to come. They have the support and they have the tools. Now they need to deliver,” added Sadan.

Negotiations for a global plastic pollution treaty are well into over-time and every day that goes by, another 30,000 tonnes of plastic pours into our oceans. Failure to conclude a strong treaty at INC-5.2 will only make the job of addressing this crisis more difficult, costly and dangerous for people all around the world. WWF’s new report conducted together with the University of Birmingham, Plastics, Health, and One Planet, synthesizes nearly 200 pieces of the latest and most notable peer-reviewed research on the potential risks that plastic pollution - especially micro- and nanoplastics (MnP) and associated high-risk chemicals - poses to human and environmental health. The report shows that MnP, as well as plastic additives, are associated with a range of biological effects, such as endocrine disruption and hormone-related cancers (like breast and testicular cancer), reproductive and fertility impairments, and chronic respiratory conditions.

While research continues to evolve, current evidence sufficiently justifies why the precautionary principle - taking action where credible risks are identified, even in the absence of absolute scientific certainty - must be invoked to minimise future harm.

“The precautionary principle has guided multiple international agreements with great success, notably the1987 Montreal Protocol, when countries acted decisively on ozone-depleting substances before the science was fully settled, preventing millions of cases of skin cancer and facilitated the restoration of the ozone layer. Building on this precedent, we urge governments and negotiators to deliver a science-based, legally binding treaty that not only tackles plastic pollution at its roots by including global bans and phase outs of the most harmful products and chemicals, but also makes protecting human, wildlife and environmental health a core function,” said Professor Dr Stefan Krause, Professor of Ecohydrology and Biogeochemistry, University of Birmingham. 

The negotiations in Geneva must conclude with a treaty built on specific binding rules supported by the majority of countries to be able to effectively tackle global plastic pollution. This means a treaty which includes global bans on the most harmful plastic products and chemicals; global product design requirements to enable a non-toxic circular economy; financial and technical support for developing countries to ensure effective implementation and mechanisms to strengthen and adapt the treaty over time. 

ENDS

For further information, please contact news@wwfint.org.  

To set up interviews with WWF experts around INC-5.2 and Plastics, Health and One Planet, please contact Fawziah Selamat at fselamat@wwfint.org. 

Notes to editors

INC-5.2 will run from 5-14 August in Geneva, Switzerland. Should you require interviews, below is our list of spokespersons and their focus (those in bold will be available throughout INC-5.2):

• Kirsten Schuijt, Director General, WWF
• Efraim Gomez, Director, Global Policy Impact, WWF
• Zaynab Sadan, INC-5.2 Global Plastics Policy Lead & Head of Delegation, WWF
• Eirik Lindebjerg, Global Plastics Adviser, WWF
• Erin Simon, VP, Plastic Waste & Business, WWF
• John Duncan, No Plastic in Nature Initiative Lead, WWF 
• Florian Titze, Finance Expert, WWF
• Maria Alejandra Gonzalez, Senior Global Policy Advisor and Regional Coordinator, Latin America & Caribbean, WWF

We can also connect you with Professor Dr Stefan Krause from the University of Birmingham, for any specific queries regarding the health science. 

List of available WWF materials and resources:
 

• Plastics, Health, and One Planet: Nearly 200 pieces of peer-reviewed research synthesised by WWF and the University of Birmingham (UK) are signalling that plastic pollution - particularly micro- and nanoplastics and added toxic chemicals - is not just an environmental crisis; it could be a crisis for all life on our planet, including humans. Ensuring negotiators deliver a global treaty that can, among other things, ban and phase out the most harmful plastic products and toxic chemicals becomes imperative if we want to avert such a crisis.
• INC-5.2 explainer: Do you know what the negotiators have been up to since the previous round of talks in Busan? What are the major faultlines negotiators will have to bridge? How many ministers are expected to attend INC-5.2? We dig deep to find answers to questions you may already be asking. And if your questions aren’t in our explainer, do reach out and ask our delegates and experts directly.
• WWF expectations for INC-5.2: WWF sets out a list of recommendations of how countries involved in the negotiations can secure an ambitious majority and deliver a fair and effective treaty on plastic pollution. WWF also makes clear what measures such a treaty must contain.
• WWF’s Global Plastic Navigator: A platform for tracking countries’ positions on the inclusion of measures being debated at the INCs.
• To browse through all WWF reports and resources on INCs, past and present, click here.