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Oil, chemical market lobbyists flood UN talks on cutting plastic pollution

Almost 200 nonrenewable fuel source and chemical industry lobbyists prepare to join today's United Countries settlements on the first global treaty to curb plastic contamination-- a 37% dive from the previous event in November, an analysis launched on Thursday showed.

The dive in registered market agents at the talks in Ottawa, Canada, comes as talks enter an essential phase. There is just one round of settlements delegated hammer out a final text that all nations settle on by the end of the year.

The goal is to develop a lawfully binding treaty that would cover the whole lifecycle of plastic, from production to disposal or reuse. But some fossil fuel and petrochemical market groups, along with nations that depend on those markets, are opposed to any U.N. treaty that would enforce strict production caps or chemical or product phase-outs.

While more than 4,000 people have actually registered to attend the talks, civil society groups said the heavy existence of agents of markets that would be the target of brand-new guidelines could weaken the settlement process.

The presence of actors in the room who are accountable for creating this crisis produces power imbalances that block development, said Rachel Radvany, ecological health advocate at the Center for International Environmental Law (CIEL), which conducted the analysis.

Similar complaints were made about the heavy representation of nonrenewable fuel source market lobbyists at last year's COP28 climate modification talks.

CIEL, a not-for-profit law group, used registration data provided by the U.N. Environment Program, which is supervising the talks. CIEL counted representatives of oil business, chemical business and their trade groups as lobbyists, along with non-profits or think-tanks that receive considerable support from those industries.

The International Council of Chemical Associations, which is comprised of members of the plastics, petrochemical and chemical manufacturing markets, hit back at the CIEL analysis, saying NGOs would be there in higher numbers than industry representatives.

While we are far outnumbered by the 2,202 overall members of the NGO neighborhood, consisting of 166 delegates from larger, international NGOs ... we value the emphasis on stakeholder involvement to assist attain our shared goal of ending plastic contamination, the group stated in a statement on Thursday.

Registered nonrenewable fuel source and chemical industry lobbyists--. which include agents from business such as ExxonMobil. and Dow-- outnumber the combined 180 diplomatic agents. of European Union delegations, the analysis discovered.

Such lobbyists also surpass the 73 agents brought. by Pacific Small Island Establishing States by more than two to. one.

Numerous lobbyists are connected to delegations from Malaysia,. Thailand and Iran among others, which gives them privileged. access to Member State-only sessions, where delicate. discussions unfold behind closed doors, CIEL's global. petrochemical project organizer Delphine Levi Alvares said.

CHARM OFFENSIVE

Groups representing more specific parts of the plastics. industry are also making their presence felt in Ottawa, hosting. events and receptions on the sidelines of the negotiations.

The Vinyl Institute, which represents the PVC/vinyl. industry, previously hosted a mixer at the November. negotiations in Nairobi. The event was focused on bring in secret. country delegations, including from the U.S. State Department,. according to e-mails and recordings gotten by guard dog group. Documented and evaluated .

We decided entering into INC-3 we wished to be pleasant, Dom. Decaria, technical director at the Vinyl Institute, stated in a. speech to a market occasion in Austin on Dec. 6. We wished to. have existence, but we also wanted to be the group that individuals. from these member states are simply comfortable having a cup of. coffee with.

The Institute is again present at the Ottawa talks.

Decaria informed this week that it wants to become part of. the negotiations to see where positions can assemble.

Our objective right now is to see how can we as market. bring common ground together with all stakeholders, he stated.