The Biden administration signaled a significant shift toward a more aggressive approach heading into what is supposed to be the final round for a United Nations treaty on plastic pollution.
The White House is open to moving the needle further left on three key policies: limiting production, targeting particularly problematic plastics and creating a list of chemicals of concern subject to obligations.
Jonathan Black, the White House Council on Environmental Quality’s senior director for chemical safety and plastic pollution prevention, announced the administration’s new stance in two invite-only, closed-to-media meetings, one with industry members and another with environmental advocates, according to multiple sources familiar with the matter.
CEQ spokesperson Justin Weiss confirmed reporting by Reuters, which first broke the news on Wednesday. When asked for more details and if the White House was planning on releasing a statement, Weiss said the council has “no further comment at this time.”
