Promoting sustainable production and consumption of plastics—a core part of the INC mandate—is intrinsically about transforming trade and supply chains. Given the magnitude of trade flows across the life cycle of plastics, a number of proposed treaty provisions to protect human health and the environment from the adverse impacts of plastic pollution will have direct or indirect implications on trade, and indeed are, in some instances, explicitly proposed to end or shape certain trade flows.

This informal briefing note provides a synopsis of how trade-related issues and considerations are arising in the INC discussions, accompanied by annexes that provide illustrative examples of approaches in existing multilateral environmental agreements. The considerations are clustered under four broad headings:

1. Trade issues related to obligations proposed for inclusion in the treaty.
2. Issues related to the ability of parties to meet trade-related obligations proposed for inclusion in the treaty, including costs of implementation.
3. Issues related to the risk of arbitrary or unjustified trade discrimination and disguised protectionism.
4. The relationship between the treaty under negotiation and other international treaties and processes.

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Recommended citation: TESS. (2024). Trade-related considerations in discussions at the Intergovernmental Negotiating Committee to develop an international legally binding instrument on plastic pollution, including in the marine environment. Forum on Trade, Environment, & the SDGs (TESS).