Catalonia is reinforcing its international leadership in the fight against plastic pollution by promoting the participation of local and regional governments in the negotiations for the future Global Treaty on Plastic Pollution. The Generalitat, together with the government of Quebec, heads the Coalition of Local and Subnational Governments to End Plastic Pollution. This alliance works to ensure the future international agreement is ambitious and recognizes the crucial role of administrations closest to the citizens.
This Monday, the Generalitat organized a technical workshop in Barcelona to analyze the current state of negotiations for a legally binding international treaty against plastic pollution. The meeting also served to highlight the Coalition's work, which unites over 100 signatories and positions itself as a unified voice in the negotiations.
The Coalition advocates for a comprehensive agreement covering the entire lifecycle of plastics, from production to waste management. It also seeks to ensure the final text includes specific references to local and subnational governments, who are on the front lines of this issue and are already implementing prevention and reduction measures.
The Generalitat's action is coordinated through the Waste Agency of Catalonia and the Government's delegation in Switzerland, with support from the Directorate General for Climate Change and Environmental Quality. The director of the ARC, Albert Planell i Saurí, highlighted Catalonia's alignment with the High Ambition Coalition, which includes the European Union, Canada, and Australia, among others.
Catalan initiatives such as the “Pacte per la Bossa” (Pact for the Bag), an agreement with the distribution sector to reduce single-use plastic bag consumption, and the “Let’s Clean Up Europe” campaign to raise awareness about waste abandoned in nature, were mentioned.
The Director General for Climate Change and Environmental Quality, Sonsoles Letang, emphasized the importance of addressing the entire plastic value chain, particularly concerning pellet dispersion. The Generalitat is reviewing industrial environmental permits to incorporate preventive measures against pellet loss and developing tools for municipalities. The objective is to ensure effective prevention measures across all competent activities, coordinated by the Zero Pellet Platform of Tarragona and supported by the new European regulation.
