A group of Democrats is pushing President Joe Biden to crack down on corporate influence over negotiations for a United Nations treaty on plastic pollution.
Eight U.S. lawmakers and a member of the European Parliament sent a letter dated Friday urging countries to enact conflict-of-interest and lobbying disclosure policies.
“The overwhelming discrepancy between the number of attendees representing petrochemical industries, which have a vested financial interest in maintaining the status quo, and national and scientific representatives, makes it glaringly obvious how industrial actors’ influence could obstruct meaningful progress,” the lawmakers wrote.
Next week, negotiators representing approximately 170 nations will meet in Busan, South Korea, for the fifth and final scheduled round of talks toward an international agreement on plastic pollution.
