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The leaders of the two largest plastic manufacturers in the world called on countries to reach a global agreement on September 1 to eliminate plastic waste in the environment, and urged governments and stakeholders around the world to promote the agreement at the upcoming United Nations meeting.

Dow Chemical Chairman and CEO Jim Fitterling (Jim Fitterling) and Lyondell Basel CEO Bob Patel (Bob Patel) participated in today's "Wall Street Journal" special event-"Arrival There: a global agreement to end plastic waste". They speak on behalf of the American Chemistry Council and the International Chemical Association Council, representing the world's leading chemical and plastic manufacturers.

The two told the Wall Street Journal that plastic manufacturers are committed and eager to increase constructive contacts with the government and other stakeholders to promote a circular economy, in which plastics are reused rather than discarded. "Simply put," Fitterling said, "our vision is to prevent plastic from entering our environment by popularizing waste collection and reuse instead of discarding plastic."

They urged support for a resolution at the United Nations Environment Assembly in February 2022 that would begin negotiations on a global agreement to end plastic waste in the environment. "We should not confuse the value of plastic with the issue of plastic waste." Patel said. "This is a global challenge that requires a global solution. With the support of the United Nations, we can develop a global framework to help us solve this critical issue."

In order to realize their vision, plastic manufacturers have proposed a set of five principles to eliminate plastic waste, accelerate the plastic circular economy, and serve as the basis for a global agreement.

All governments agree to eliminate plastic waste leakage into the environment before a specific date, and formulate national action plans and policies suitable for the region, allowing flexible adjustments according to local conditions.

Realize the widespread use of waste collection and support the deployment of technologies (including advanced recycling) to improve the recycling of plastics.

Recognize the role of plastics in a low-carbon future by supporting life cycle analysis as a means of assessing the impact of plastics and alternatives.

Support the innovation of product and packaging design by formulating global guidelines on design, recycled content and resource optimization with input from the industry.

Use a validated and coordinated method to measure the progress of plastic waste through globally recognized definitions and reporting indicators.

"Jim and Bob have played a leading role in developing solutions to eliminate plastic waste in our environment, both in their company and industry," said Joshua Bakar, vice president of the Plastics Division of the American Chemistry Council. "Plastic manufacturers look forward to participating in the discussion of the new agreement, which will help bring scalable solutions to end plastic waste around the world."