Exploring the Option of a New Global Agreement on Marine Plastic Pollution – A Guide to the Issues

Foreword

We live on a blue sphere; 71 per cent of our planet is covered by ocean. It is the least explored habitat, but it is home to the greatest diversity of life on Earth. Oceans are central in our lives and unite the planet. More than 80 per cent of all goods are shipped around the world. Healthy oceans provide food, jobs, and economic growth, and support the well-being of coastal and urban communities. One in 10 livelihoods depends on fisheries globally. Oceans regulate the climate; the largest carbon sink on the planet can be found in our oceans. Healthy oceans form a central pillar of the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), and a prerequisite for the

achievement of the entire 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development. Yet our oceans are in peril and on the brink of collapse. Fish stocks are depleted beyond biological sustainability. In the last decades, millions of tonnes of plastic have entered the oceans and spread from the furthest poles to the deepest trenches. With increasing ocean acidification, rising temperatures, heightened sea levels, continuous

With increasing ocean acidification, rising temperatures, heightened sea levels, continuous pollution, and growing biodiversity loss, it’s obvious that our oceans are under significant stress, eroding the natural capital upon which future growth and generations depend.

pollution, and growing biodiversity loss, it is obvious that our oceans are under significant stress, eroding the natural capital upon which future growth and generations depend. In 2020, we witnessed tragedy, hardship, unprecedented challenges, and devastating loss . The COVID-19 pandemic continues to exact a heavy toll on many countries, constantly forcing us all to reorient our resources and priorities. The pandemic also reminds us of how fundamentally interdependent our international system is. While States each have a responsibility to protect their citizens from harm, the pandemic shows that no State can adequately address problems of an inherently transboundary character alone. In an interconnected world, no State is an island. Global, transboundary problems require multilateral solutions.

8