Bethanie Carney Almroth #PlasticsTreaty
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bcarneyalmroth.bsky.social
Bethanie Carney Almroth #PlasticsTreaty
@bcarneyalmroth.bsky.social

Ecotoxicologist, fish biologist, plastic researcher, teacher, communicator, wife, mother, lover of animals.

Steering member of The Scientists' Coalition for an Effective Plastics Treaty https://ikhapp.org/scientistscoalition/ .. more

Environmental science 67%
Geography 17%
"When science is denied, it undermines our understanding of problems."

@bcarneyalmroth.bsky.social of University of Gothenburg stresses that amidst a climate of narrowing spaces & funding, scientists must be enabled to support public & decision makers to understand causes & find solutions.
💣 An excellent analysis of the #PlasticsTreaty 's Whistledown (aka @magnuslovold.bsky.social) of what happened behind the scenes at the end of #INC5.2. Once again, important questions are raised about the role of UNEP, which seems to support a low-ambition treaty #Plastics
medium.com/points-of-or...
Palace intrigues
The plastics treaty talks in Geneva ended without a deal. As negotiators weigh their options about the way forward, troubling questions are…
medium.com

backchannel1.substack.com/p/the-consen...

This is no longer just about plastic pollution. The credibility of multilateralism itself depends on proving that a small minority cannot indefinitely hold the planet hostage.
@genevaenvironmentnetwork.org @ciel.org @breakfreefromplastic.org
The Consensus Syndrome
An effective treaty on plastic pollution will require countries to break the long-standing spell of consensus — and finally put decisions to a vote.
backchannel1.substack.com

I will be in Geneva at the UN #PlasticsTreaty INC5.2 with 58 members of @scientistscoa.bsky.social working to support evidence based-decision making in the negotiations.

Get in touch for all things plastics + science + treaty!

#PlasticPollution #ToxicChemicals #Health #HumanRights
Worth pointing out that we'll be talking histories of #Plastics just after INC-5.2 (negotiations for a UN #PlasticsTreaty) conclude in Geneva.

Let's hope scientists get heard 🙏

Latest reporting on the topic from @dpcarrington.bsky.social shows how hard that is www.theguardian.com/environment/...
With the INC5.2 schedule filling up, here is a side event focused on health and plastics in the #plasticstreaty. The Lancet Countdown on Health and Plastics will launch on the morning of August, 4rd at an event in Geneva and online. Join us!

tessforum.org/latest/launc...
TESS - Launch Event: Announcing The Lancet Countdown on Health and Plastics
tessforum.org
Today there's a public briefing on the collection, "Act boldly or fail: academic perspectives at a pivotal moment in global plastics treaty negotiations," where 60+ experts outline the consequences of delayed or diluted action 1/
www.eurekalert.org/news-release...
Call for bold action at upcoming Global Plastics Treaty Talks (INC-5.2)
As the world prepares for the final round of negotiations on a legally binding global plastics treaty (INC-5.2), from 5-14 August 2025, over 60 academic experts have stepped forward to outline exactly...
www.eurekalert.org
🤓 IEEFA just released a briefing note with their considerations for the final round of UN Plastic Treaty negotiations!

*Read the full Briefing Note: tinyurl.com/4cmu3m6p
#PlasticsTreaty
UN international legally binding instrument to end plastic pollution: Considerations for the final round of negotiations
Markets for the core feedstocks of virgin plastics—are currently oversupplied, creating market instability and decreased profits.
tinyurl.com
Thanks @dpcarrington.bsky.social for the insights into @unep.org and the #PlasticsTreaty. And @bcarneyalmroth.bsky.social keep up the good work💚

‘Total infiltration’: How plastics industry swamped vital global treaty talks
www.theguardian.com/environment/...
‘Total infiltration’: How plastics industry swamped vital global treaty talks
Petrostates and well-funded lobbyists at UN-hosted talks are derailing a deal to cut plastic production and protect people and the planet
www.theguardian.com
Interested in the upcoming #plasticstreaty INC-5.2? Get regular insights, updates, fact checks, and more from a global network of independent scientists here:

preview.mailerlite.io/forms/165518...
INC Science Update Sign Up
preview.mailerlite.io
💡 The scientific evidence shows the need for a reduction in the production and consumption of primary plastic polymers to sustainable levels.

➡️ Learn more in our new policy brief on Article 6: zenodo.org/records/1563...
📑 See all policy briefs on the different Articles:
@scientistscoalition | Linktree
The Scientists' Coalition for an Effective Plastics Treaty
linktr.ee

I have a new, short publication out! The Entangled Fates of Plastics and Climate Change. I briefly review the material and geopolitical connections between these two environmental problems and point out the way forward. www.cambridge.org/core/journal... 1/2
The Entangled Fates of Plastics and Climate Change | Cambridge Prisms: Plastics | Cambridge Core
The Entangled Fates of Plastics and Climate Change
www.cambridge.org
✍️ Don't miss our new policy brief that explores the core elements of Article 5 and the important role of plastic product design.

➡️ Learn more: zenodo.org/records/1563...
📑 Explore our other policy briefs on the different Articles:
@scientistscoalition | Linktree
The Scientists' Coalition for an Effective Plastics Treaty
linktr.ee
🌍 New Briefing Note by @ieefainstitute.bsky.social "Trade Measures Key to the Success of Global Regulation to Curb Plastic Pollution" highlights how strong trade provisions are essential to make the global plastics treaty effective.
🔗 tinyurl.com/yv3bzay8
Trade measures a cornerstone to the success of global regulation to curb plastic pollution
Plastics, across its lifecycle, is a globalized, interconnected market, so a lack of strong trade provisions would limit the effectiveness of the objectives of the proposed binding agreement.
tinyurl.com
with the final round of UN plastic treaty negotiations in 4 weeks time, we've written a short piece that sets out the concept of a 'petrochemical historical bloc' to reveal the depth and extent of forces opposing strong global governance of plastic
The petrochemical historical bloc: Exposing the extent and depth of opposition to a high-ambition plastics treaty | Cambridge Prisms: Plastics | Cambridge Core
The petrochemical historical bloc: Exposing the extent and depth of opposition to a high-ambition plastics treaty
www.cambridge.org

Tagging Azora König Kardgar @theresekarlsson.bsky.social Sara Brosché Eric Carmona @toxicsfree.bsky.social

For more information on chemicals in recycled PE, see our data in brief www.sciencedirect.com/science/arti...

And for more on how we can design #plastics and #policy to make recycling safer and more sustainable, read our commentary www.cambridge.org/core/journal...
A dataset of organic pollutants identified and quantified in recycled polyethylene pellets
Plastics are produced with a staggering array of chemical compounds, with many being known to possess hazardous properties, and others lacking compreh…
www.sciencedirect.com

🐟 We then exposed #Zebrafish embryos to PE leachates and found changes in mRNA expression (behavior was not impacted).
🧬Affected genes are involved in #adipogenesis, lipid metabolism, and endocrine regulation. #EDC

⚗️ We found that the recycled plastic pellets contain hazardous chemicals that leach into water. Our analyses identified 84 chemicals - pharmaceuticals, pesticides and plastics additives in the water #NIAS #ToxicChemicals.

📢 NEW PAPER on #Chemicals in #RecycledPlastics! 📢

We collected recycled polyethylene (PE) pellets from small scale mechanical #recycling facilities, measured chemicals leaching out of the plastics into water and impacts in zebrafish.
#PlasticsTreaty #INC5-2

www.sciencedirect.com/science/arti...
Effects of leachates from black recycled polyethylene plastics on mRNA expression of genes involved in adipogenesis and endocrine pathways in zebrafish embryos
Black recycled polyethylene pellets were collected from India, Nigeria and Taiwan. These pellet samples were used to create water leachates (in zebraf…
www.sciencedirect.com
It is easy to be cynical about 30,000 people traveling to the French Riviera for a UN mtg with no decision making authority. But it came just before some huge moments for our oceans, and delivered real momentum for ocean sanctuaries, the #PlasticsTreaty, and a moratorium on #DeepSeaMining. #UNOC.
back on my archival research on Big Food and plastic pollution

This is the message to shareholders in PepsiCo's 1970 annual report, which boasts of the company's promising research into a 'burnable plastic bottle' that will solve the 'solid waste problem'
New paper out on #plasticcredits! Led by the inimitable
@moon-sc.bsky.social, we break down fundamental problems in #plastic credits, including those common to carbon offsetting as well as some issues unique to plastic -- like the lack of permanent removal. www.cell.com/one-earth/ab...
Protecting human rights means addressing risks posed by the full lifecycle of plastics to #HumanRights.

Join the #WorldEnvironmentDay celebration showing how #PlasticsTreaty must recognize that plastics are human rights issues.

📆 5 June, 9:00 CEST
🌍 tiny.cc/GENWED25

> The other will explain why evidence-based science is crucial to the success of the global plastics treaty. This discussion will link evidence-based science to the need for conflict-of-interest mitigation in science bodies, Indigenous knowledge, & human rights.

www.cawthron.org.nz/the-un-treat...
UNOC Event - The UN Treaty to End Plastic Pollution: Robust Science for Success - Cawthron Institute
The Scientists’ Coalition for an Effective Plastics Treaty welcomes you to two ‘fireside chats’ with scientists, plastics experts, and policymakers. One will explore how harmonised criteria and standa...
www.cawthron.org.nz

> One chat will explore how harmonised criteria and standards for plastics could help drive down global plastic pollution if they were guided by independent science.

Are you attending the UN Oceans conference in Nice? Members of the @scientistscoa.bsky.social will be there! Join scientists, plastics experts, and policy-makers for two ‘fireside chats’ about how we can reduce, and ultimately eliminate, plastics pollution in the #PlasticsTreaty:
(Link below)
@hejsupport.bsky.social side event on #transparency & #traceability of chemicals in products, held at #BRSCOP2025, examined the need for globally harmonized, legally binding systems to ensure transparency & traceability of hazardous substances, including in #plastics hej-support.org/why-is-it-im...
Why is it important to achieve transparency of information on chemicals in products?
A side event on the transparency and traceability of chemicals in products was held at the BRS COPs on May 7. It was organized by HEJSupport, SSNC, and groundWork South Africa, and moderated by Kei
hej-support.org