COMPARISON TABLE ON THE POTENTIAL RESOLUTIONS ON PLASTIC POLLUTION TO BE ADOPTED AT UNEA 5.2

This briefing by the Center for International Environmental Law and the Environmental Investigation Agency provides a textual comparison of two draft resolutions on plastic pollution submitted for UNEA 5.2: one led by Rwanda and Peru (RP) and one led by Japan (JP). The document analyzes convergences and divergences in mandate, scope, and institutional structure to support the potential merging of the resolutions.

• The Rwanda-Peru (RP) and Japan (JP) draft resolutions converge on the need for a global legally binding instrument and the creation of an intergovernmental negotiating committee (INC) to negotiate it, with both calling for quick negotiations before UNEA-6.
• A primary difference in scope is that the RP resolution addresses plastic pollution across all environments, whereas the JP resolution focuses specifically on "marine plastic pollution."
• The RP resolution adopts a full lifecycle approach covering production (upstream), product design (midstream), and waste management (downstream). In contrast, the JP resolution emphasizes downstream interventions, such as monitoring marine discharge and national action plans focused on waste management, and excludes specific provisions on sustainable production and product design.
• The RP resolution proposes a stronger institutional framework than the JP resolution, specifically requesting the consideration of a scientific and socio-economic body and a financial mechanism to support treaty implementation.
• The mandates for the INC differ: the RP resolution contains an open mandate allowing the committee to consider any other relevant aspects, while the JP resolution contains a closed mandate that restricts the committee from considering other relevant aspects.
• The JP resolution establishes a specific primary goal of reducing additional marine plastic pollution to zero by 2050, aligning with the Osaka Blue Ocean Vision.

APA

Center for International Environmental Law (2021). COMPARISON TABLE ON THE POTENTIAL RESOLUTIONS ON PLASTIC POLLUTION TO BE ADOPTED AT UNEA 5.2. https://www.ciel.org/wp-content/uploads/2021/12/CIEL_EIA_12_2021_Comparison-Table-on-the-Potential-Resolutions-on-Plastic-Pollution-to-be-adopted-at-UNEA-5.2.docx-2.pdf

Chicago

Center for International Environmental Law. COMPARISON TABLE ON THE POTENTIAL RESOLUTIONS ON PLASTIC POLLUTION TO BE ADOPTED AT UNEA 5.2. 2021. https://www.ciel.org/wp-content/uploads/2021/12/CIEL_EIA_12_2021_Comparison-Table-on-the-Potential-Resolutions-on-Plastic-Pollution-to-be-adopted-at-UNEA-5.2.docx-2.pdf.

Wikipedia

{{cite report |author=Center for International Environmental Law |title=COMPARISON TABLE ON THE POTENTIAL RESOLUTIONS ON PLASTIC POLLUTION TO BE ADOPTED AT UNEA 5.2 |date=10 December 2021 |url=https://www.ciel.org/wp-content/uploads/2021/12/CIEL_EIA_12_2021_Comparison-Table-on-the-Potential-Resolutions-on-Plastic-Pollution-to-be-adopted-at-UNEA-5.2.docx-2.pdf |access-date=17 August 2026 |via=Climate Insights Directory}}

BibTeX

@techreport{centerforinternationalenvironmentallaw2021comparison, author = {{Center for International Environmental Law}}, title = {{COMPARISON TABLE ON THE POTENTIAL RESOLUTIONS ON PLASTIC POLLUTION TO BE ADOPTED AT UNEA 5.2}}, institution = {Center for International Environmental Law}, year = {2021}, month = dec, url = {https://www.ciel.org/wp-content/uploads/2021/12/CIEL_EIA_12_2021_Comparison-Table-on-the-Potential-Resolutions-on-Plastic-Pollution-to-be-adopted-at-UNEA-5.2.docx-2.pdf}, urldate = {2026-08-17}, note = {Indexed by Climate Insights Directory} }