WTO representative Li Chenggang: China is willing to work with other members to tackle plastic pollution

On June 13, Li Chenggang, China's permanent representative to the World Trade Organization, said in Geneva, Switzerland that China is willing to join hands with other WTO members to tackle the global challenge of plastic pollution
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At the press conference on the environmental protection initiative of the 12th WTO Ministerial Conference held on the same day, Li Chenggang said that "to deal with global challenges requires the joint efforts and cooperation of the world", and China will work closely with other members within the framework of the WTO.
, to promote the work related to the prevention and control of plastic pollution
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Li Chenggang said that China attaches great importance to tackling plastic pollution and is one of the first WTO members to take measures to deal with plastic pollution
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He said that sustainability is one of the goals of China's economic and social development.
In recent years, China has introduced a series of policies to limit plastic pollution.
China is willing to share experience with other WTO members and work together to actively deal with plastic pollution from the trade side.

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China is the initiator and one of six co-coordinators of the WTO's Informal Dialogue on Plastic Pollution and Environmentally Sustainable Plastics Trade (IDP), which has attracted 72 WTO members to sign up
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Li Chenggang said that since the release of the Ministerial Statement on the Informal Dialogue on Plastic Pollution and Environmentally Sustainable Plastics Trade at the end of 2021, "encouraging" progress has been made on the IDP initiative
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Li Chenggang said that the WTO can play a unique role in coordinating members to take collective actions to deal with plastic pollution.
China will continue to work together with other members, adhere to the priority of development, adhere to the people-centered, adhere to inclusiveness, adhere to innovation-driven, adhere to the people Coexist in harmony with nature, adhere to an action orientation, and promote all parties to translate consensus into practical actions under the WTO framework
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Biodegradable materials will become the main solution for global "plastic reduction"

The Chinese government has always attached great importance to plastic pollution control.
As early as 2007, it introduced policies and measures to restrict the production and sale of plastic shopping bags.
It is one of the earliest countries in the world to carry out plastic pollution control
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In 2020, the National Development and Reform Commission and the Ministry of Ecology and Environment jointly issued the "Opinions on Further Strengthening the Control of Plastic Pollution", which requires the development and promotion of plastic products that meet the performance standards, green environmental protection, economical and suitable plastic products and products that are recyclable, easy to recycle, and degradable.
Substitute products, specify the category of substitute products
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In 2021, the National Development and Reform Commission issued the requirements of the "14th Five-Year Plan for Plastic Pollution Control Action Plan" to actively promote the reduction of plastic production and use at the source, including actively promoting the green design of plastic products, continuing to promote the use of single-use plastic products to reduce the amount, scientifically and prudently.
Promote plastic alternatives
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In 2022, at the regular meeting of the Ministry of Ecology and Environment, the spokesperson of the Ministry of Ecology and Environment, Liu Youbin, said that the next step will be to implement the legal requirements for plastic pollution control, and promote the "Opinions on Further Strengthening the Control of Plastic Pollution" and the "14th Five-Year Plan" for plastic pollution.
Governance Action Plan” and other effective implementation, precise, scientific and legal control of plastic pollution
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At the same time, further strengthen cooperation with the international community and actively contribute Chinese experience and Chinese wisdom to the international community
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As an alternative to traditional plastics, biodegradable materials can replace them in many fields, and can be degraded in the microbial environment, and both bulk plastics and microplastics can be treated
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Taking polylactic acid (PLA) as an example, it is relatively stable at room temperature, but it is easily degraded into CO2 and water quickly in a slightly higher temperature environment, acid-base environment, and microbial environment
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Therefore, PLA products can be used safely within the validity period by controlling the environment and fillers, and they can be degraded in time after being discarded, without generating plastic waste
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China has the independent production capacity of almost all mainstream biodegradable materials such as PLA, PBAT, PBS, PHA, PGA, and PPC
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According to Juru Ru information statistics, as of the end of 2021, the total global biodegradable material production capacity is about 1.
42 million tons per year (excluding starch-based plastics).
The global production capacity is mainly distributed in China, Western Europe and North America
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China's total production capacity reached 860,000 tons per year, a substantial increase of 48.
3% over the end of the previous year, accounting for 60.
6% of global production capacity
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Therefore, under the guidance of top-down policies and the blessing of the world's first production capacity, biodegradable materials are expected to become the "Chinese experience and Chinese wisdom" of the world's "plastic reduction"
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