The WTO Dialogue on Plastics Pollution: Overview and State of Play

The WTO Dialogue on Plastics Pollution, launched in November 2020 and co-sponsored by 75 members, seeks to align international trade policies with global efforts to reduce plastic pollution. The Dialogue operates through three workstreams: crosscutting issues (transparency and capacity building), promoting trade in sustainable technologies and substitutes, and fostering circularity and reduction. Key priorities include improving the Harmonized System (HS) for better trade data, integrating plastic pollution into the Aid for Trade initiative, and coordinating with other international frameworks like the Basel Convention and the UNEA's legally binding instrument on plastic pollution.

• Trade is a massive component of the plastics economy; in 2021, the value of trade across the plastics life cycle was nearly $1.2 trillion, with approximately 370 million metric tonnes of plastic crossing international borders.
• The WTO Dialogue on Plastics Pollution is a member-led initiative launched in November 2020, currently co-sponsored by 75 members who represent more than 75% of the global trade in plastics.
• The Dialogue is organized into three workstreams: Workstream 1 focuses on crosscutting issues like transparency and capacity building; Workstream 2 promotes trade in sustainable waste management technologies and substitutes; and Workstream 3 addresses circularity and the reduction of harmful plastics.
• A primary challenge for trade transparency is the limitation of the World Customs Organization's Harmonized System (HS) codes, which provide insufficient detail on primary plastics, single-use plastics, material composition, and plastic packaging.
• The Dialogue identifies 'Aid for Trade' as a vital mechanism to help developing countries enhance regulatory capacities, promote non-plastic substitutes, and improve waste management facilities.
• Cooperation options for promoting sustainable trade include reducing import tariffs and non-tariff measures for waste management technologies and non-plastic substitutes, as well as fostering technology transfer to developing nations.
• The Dialogue explores reducing the trade of unnecessary plastics through voluntary political commitments, bans on problematic materials, and addressing business-to-business plastic packaging used in international transport.
• Subsidies are identified as a barrier to the circular economy because they artificially lower the price of virgin plastic feedstocks, which undercuts recycling markets and discourages the use of secondary raw materials.
• The Dialogue aims to complement other international efforts, specifically the Basel Convention's plastic waste amendments and the UNEA's process to develop a legally binding instrument on plastic pollution by the end of 2024.

APA

Birkbeck, C. D., Sugathan, M., & Eraso, S. A. (2022). The WTO Dialogue on Plastics Pollution: Overview and State of Play. Forum on Trade, Environment, & the SDGs. https://lyrical-cormorant.files.svdcdn.com/production/assets/images/Publications/TESS-Policy-Brief-The-WTO-Dialogue-on-Plastics-Pollution.pdf?dm=1678460889

Chicago

Birkbeck, Carolyn Deere, Mahesh Sugathan, and Simon Ardila Eraso. The WTO Dialogue on Plastics Pollution: Overview and State of Play. Forum on Trade, Environment, & the SDGs, 2022. https://lyrical-cormorant.files.svdcdn.com/production/assets/images/Publications/TESS-Policy-Brief-The-WTO-Dialogue-on-Plastics-Pollution.pdf?dm=1678460889.

Wikipedia

{{cite report |last1=Birkbeck |first1=Carolyn Deere |last2=Sugathan |first2=Mahesh |last3=Eraso |first3=Simon Ardila |title=The WTO Dialogue on Plastics Pollution: Overview and State of Play |publisher=Forum on Trade, Environment, & the SDGs |date=December 2022 |url=https://lyrical-cormorant.files.svdcdn.com/production/assets/images/Publications/TESS-Policy-Brief-The-WTO-Dialogue-on-Plastics-Pollution.pdf?dm=1678460889 |access-date=17 August 2026 |via=Climate Insights Directory}}

BibTeX

@techreport{birkbeck2022wto, author = {Birkbeck, Carolyn Deere and Sugathan, Mahesh and Eraso, Simon Ardila}, title = {{The WTO Dialogue on Plastics Pollution: Overview and State of Play}}, institution = {Forum on Trade, Environment, \& the SDGs}, year = {2022}, month = dec, url = {https://lyrical-cormorant.files.svdcdn.com/production/assets/images/Publications/TESS-Policy-Brief-The-WTO-Dialogue-on-Plastics-Pollution.pdf?dm=1678460889}, urldate = {2026-08-17}, note = {Indexed by Climate Insights Directory} }