- Bayern hit nine, Real Madrid and Liverpool win as new Champions League kicks off
- Author John Grisham joins bid to save Texas death row inmate
- Venezuela arrests fourth American over alleged 'plot' against Maduro
- 'Happy' Mbappe strikes on Madrid Champions League debut win over Stuttgart
- Man Utd hit Barnsley for seven in League Cup rout
- Dolphins quarterback Tagovailoa facing concussion layoff
- Stylish Liverpool strut past Milan in confident Champions league opener
- Kane scores four as Bayern put nine past Zagreb in the Champions League
- Mbappe strikes on Madrid Champions League debut win over Stuttgart
- More than 3,600 food packaging chemicals found in human bodies
- Harris calls Trump as assassination scare sparks tensions
- Dow edges down from record as some eye a smaller Fed rate cut
- Sommer vows Inter will 'defend with all we have' to stop Haaland
- Report links meatpacking companies to 'war on nature' in Brazil
- Bolivian ex-leader Morales, backers set out on weeklong protest march
- Smith grateful to McCullum for launching his England career
- Arizona to ask court to rule on voting rights
- Villa make perfect start on Champions League return after 41-year absence
- Israeli supply chain infiltration likely behind Hezbollah pager blasts: analysts
- Rodgers backs Celtic to be 'really competitive' in Champions League
- Spacewalk an 'emotional experience' for private astronauts
- Storm Boris toll rises to 22 in central Europe
- Nine dead, 2,800 wounded as Lebanon's Hezbollah hit by pager blasts
- Boeing, union resume talks as strike empties Seattle plants
- Over 3,600 food packaging chemicals found in human bodies
- Australia's Zampa accepts Ashes chances remote as 100th ODI looms
- UN General Assembly debates call for end to Israeli occupation
- Marseille complete signing of French international Rabiot
- Easterby to fill in as Ireland coach while Farrell is with the Lions
- Hezbollah in Lebanon hit by wave of deadly pager blasts
- Postecoglou taken aback by criticism of his second season success claim
- US, European stocks rise on retail sales, rate cut expectations
- Fendi sees Roaring 20s at Milan Fashion Week in challenging times
- Ronaldo's Al Nassr part ways with coach Castro
- Scottish government backs Glasgow to stage troubled 2026 Commonwealth Games
- Storm Boris toll rises to 21 in central Europe
- Instagram, under pressure, tightens protection for teens
- Inflation slows again in Canada to 2%
- US, European stocks rise on eve of Fed rate decision
- EU bans Algerian spread toasted on social media
- Sean 'Diddy' Combs charged with racketeering, sex trafficking
- Trump returns to campaign trail after assassination scare
- Activist urges repatriation of Native Americans dead in Paris 'human zoo'
- US retail sales see slight rise, beating expectations
- US Fed begins two-day meeting set to end with rate cut
- Exploding Hezbollah pagers wound hundreds across Lebanon
- Runners-up Yokohama thrashed 7-3 in AFC Champions League goal fest
- Sean 'Diddy' Combs to plead not guilty to racketeering, sex trafficking
- Jihadist group claims rare attack on Mali capital
- 'I am a rapist,' Frenchman tells trial over mass rape of wife
UN takes 'historic' step toward global treaty on plastic trash
The United Nations on Wednesday agreed to start negotiating a world-first global treaty on plastic pollution in what has been hailed as a watershed moment for the planet.
Nearly 200 nations at the UN Environment Assembly in Nairobi unanimously agreed to create an intergovernmental committee to negotiate and finalise a legally binding plastics treaty by 2024.
UNEA chair Espen Barthe Eide declared the resolution passed with a strike of the gavel -- itself made from recycled plastic -- as the assembly hall erupted into cheers and applause.
"We are making history today. You should all be proud," said Eide, who is Norway's climate and environment minister.
Negotiators have been given a broad and robust mandate to target plastic trash in all its forms.
It addresses not just the bottles, straws and shopping bags floating in rivers and oceans, but invisible microplastics found in the deepest oceans and highest mountains, and within the air, soil and food chain.
- 'Historic crossroad' -
Supporters described the commitment as the most important environmental decision taken by the UN in years.
"We stand at a crossroad in history when ambitious decisions taken today can prevent plastic pollution from contributing to our planet's ecosystem collapse," said Marco Lambertini from WWF.
The broad treaty framework approved by 193 UN nations -- among them major plastic producers like the United States and China -- does not spell out specific measures but leaves particulars to negotiations.
But the scope covers pollution "from source to sea" -- a key demand of many nations -- and could for the first time introduce caps on the production of new plastic from fossil fuels.
Other regulations could require that industry redesign products to make recycling easier and stem the torrent of trash created by single-use items.
Less than 10 percent of plastic is recycled. Most of the 460 million tonnes of plastic produced in 2019 wound up in landfill and oceans.
"This is a clear acknowledgement that the entire life cycle of plastic, from fossil fuel extraction to disposal, creates pollution that is harmful to people and the planet," said Graham Forbes from Greenpeace.
- 'Landmark' decision -
The amount of plastic entering the oceans is forecast to triple by 2040, and governments have been under pressure to unite against the trash "epidemic".
The rate of plastic production has also grown faster than any other material and is expected to double within two decades without urgent action.
By some estimates, a garbage truck's worth of plastic is dumped into the sea every minute.
Large pieces of plastic are a notorious peril for sea birds, whales and other marine animals. But at the microscopic level, particles of plastic can also enter the food chain, eventually joining the human diet.
To address the urgency, talks toward concluding the treaty are being fast-tracked and the first round is slated for later this year.
Diplomats and conservationists cautioned that the strength of the treaty would be determined by the level of political will shown in these negotiations.
Setting targets, ensuring accountability, and monitoring success or otherwise could prove sticking points, said UN environment chief Inger Andersen.
Negotiators will need to establish what measures are binding or voluntary, and some countries are pushing for flexibility in setting their own goals through national action plans.
"There will be a number of thorny issues as there always is when we start a negotiation," said Andersen, head of the UN Environment Programme.
Big corporations had expressed support for a binding agreement and negotiators were urged to engage industry players in the process.
Dozens of major businesses had called for a common set of rules around plastic to create a level playing field for competition.
Trade group Plastics Europe said its products played a vital role in society and industry was doing its part to bolster recycling and invest in solutions.
"The UNEA resolution represents a major step towards the creation of a waste free future which is critical to achieving our collective climate ambitions," said Plastics Europe president Markus Steilemann.
Ch.Kahalev--AMWN