Environment Minister announces Israel joining calls for global plastics treaty

Sep 21, 2023

Tel Aviv [Israel], September 22 (ANI/TPS): Israel’s Minister of Environmental Protection Idit Silman announced Wednesday night at the World Economic Forum in New York that Israel is joining the coalition of countries calling for the creation of a strong international treaty for the global treatment of plastic. This is in order to prevent pollution from plastics.
The international negotiations for the creation of the plastic treaty began in 2022 in Uruguay, where an ambitious goal was set to create a treaty by the end of 2024. Israel is an active partner in the international effort to create the treaty, and today the State of Israel joins a coalition of countries calling for the creation of a strong treaty.
Excess use of plastic and plastic pollution in space are a global problem. This problem arises from products designed to last a short time, products that cannot be repaired, products whose design makes it difficult to recycle or products that lose their marketing value after a short time. Therefore, the convention aims to produce normality (standardization) in these areas as well.
The State of Israel is one of the leading countries in the OECD in increased use of disposable plastic utensils. One of the goals of the new treaty is to deal with the microplastics that return to us in food.
The Ministry and the minister opposed the cancellation of the tax on single-use plastics, which proved to reduce consumption, and are working on alternative measures.
With Israel joining the coalition of states and being a partner in global agreements, the internal state effort will accelerate and will be strengthened by its membership in the global effort in the field, so that Israel will close significant gaps in the field both in legislation and in implementation. (ANI/TPS)