A central question remains unresolved in the draft treaty: Is plastic pollution basically a waste management problem, or can it be solved only with a cap on production?
In 1987, the Montreal Protocol established a ban on substances responsible for destroying the ozone layer, which is essential for protection against the sun’s rays.
United Nations efforts to advance a global treaty on plastic pollution echo past multilateral agreements that tackled ozone layer depletion and acid rain.
Rocket emissions in the upper atmosphere can damage the ozone layer but are neither measured nor regulated. It’s a policy gap we have to close if the space industry is to grow sustainably.
Many developing nations have little cold storage and lose much of their perishable food before it gets to markets. Climate-friendly refrigeration can provide huge environmental and social benefits.
Molina, who died on Oct. 8, ‘thought climate change was the biggest problem in the world long before most people did.’ His research on man-made depletion of the ozone layer won the 1995 Nobel Prize.
For several years, emissions of CFCs have been rising, in apparent defiance of a global ban in place since 2010. A new global detective effort has traced the source to two eastern Chinese provinces.
Dozens of cities, states and nations are enacting bans and restrictions on single-use plastic bags and other items. A legal expert explains how a global treaty could build on these efforts.
Fertilizer is a key source of nitrogen pollution which fouls air and water worldwide. Current regulations target farmers, but focusing on producers could spur them to develop greener products.
Almost 30 years ago the world responded to the realisation that our ozone layer was in trouble. The resulting Montreal Protocol was a rare example of global cooperation, but there’s no room for complacency.
Earth’s ozone layer shields us from harmful ultraviolet radiation. Nations have been working to reduce ozone-depleting chemicals since the 1980s, but recent studies show that there is still work to do.
Distinguished Professor and Deputy Director of ARC Securing Antarctica's Environmental Future (SAEF), University of Wollongong, University of Wollongong