INF/TE/IDP/RD/129*  
 
20 June 2023 
(23-4224) Page: 1/3 
 Original: English/anglais/inglés  
 
  
UNOFFICIAL ROOM DOCUMENT1 
 
DIALOGUE ON PLASTICS POLLUTION AND  ENVIRONMENTALLY SUSTAINABLE 
PLASTICS TRADE  
SOLUTIONS TO PLASTIC POLLUTION  - WEF’S RESPONSES  
Workshop on reduction and circularity to tackle plastic pollution – 27 April 2023 
 
DOCUMENT DE S ÉANCE NON OFFICIEL1 
 
DIALOGUE ON PLASTICS POLLUTION AND  ENVIRONMENTALLY SUSTAINABLE 
PLASTICS TRADE  
SOLUTIONS TO PLASTIC POLLUTION  - WEF’S RESPONSES  
Workshop on reduction and circularity to tackle plastic pollution – 27 April 2023  
 
DOCUMENTO DE SALA NO OF ICIAL1 
 
DIALOGUE ON PLASTICS POLLUTION AND  ENVIRONMENTALLY SUSTAINABLE 
PLASTICS TRADE  
SOLUTIONS TO PLASTIC POLLUTION  - WEF’S RESPONSES  
Workshop on reduction and circularity to tackle plastic pollution – 27 April 2023  
_______________  
  
 
* In Original language only/En langue originale seulement/En el idioma original solamente.  
1 Documents issued in the RD series are not official WTO documents. They usually appear in their 
language of submission and will not be translated systematically into the working languages of the WTO. They 
are intended for use in WTO meeting rooms and are a ttributed an unofficial symbol for archiving purposes only.  
Les documents de la série RD ne sont pas des documents officiels de l 'OMC. Ils ne paraissent 
généralement que dans la langue dans laquelle ils ont été communiqués et ne seront pas systématiquemen t 
traduits dans les langues de travail de l'OMC. Ils sont destinés aux salles de réunion de l'OMC et une cote non 
officielle leur est attribuée à des fins d'archivage.  
Los documentos de la serie RD no son documentos oficiales de la OMC. Por lo general se d istribuyen en 
el idioma en que han sido presentados y no se traducen sistemáticamente a los idiomas de trabajo de la 
Organización. Se distribuyen para su uso en las salas de reunión de la OMC y se les asigna una signatura no 
oficial a efectos de archivo ún icamente.  INF/TE/IDP/RD/129  
 
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DIALOGUE ON PLASTICS POLLUTION AND ENVIRONMENTALLY SUSTAINABLE PLASTICS 
TRADE  
 
WORLD ECONOMIC FORUM (WEF) SUBMISSION  
 
1) Types of trade measures most often used and best practices  
 
Q. What principles and criteria should be taken into account when identifying "best practices" in 
relation to Trade -related Plastic Measures (TrPMs) aimed at reduction to tackle plastic pollution, 
while bearing special attention to issues and challenges arising for developing members, including 
SIDS.  
 
2) Trade policies and practices requiring realignment with the objective of ending plastic 
pollution.  
 
Q. What are the trade policies, if any, that are misaligned with the objectives of ending plastic 
pollution to protect human health and the environment, throu gh reduction?  
Lopsided subsidy regimes that incorrectly reflect the true cost of virgin polymers  
Tariff regimes incompatible with promoting substitutes and alternatives to plastics  
Non-tariff barriers inhibiting e.g., the deployment of reuse models, import  of environmental 
technologies to facilitate plastics processing and recycling  
 
3) Unnecessary or harmful plastics and plastic products most targeted by trade policies, 
including single -use plastics and plastic packaging associated with international trad e 
 
Q. What unnecessary or harmful plastics and plastic products, including single -use plastics and 
plastic packaging associated with international trade, are already being targeted by [your] trade 
policies and what are their identification codes under the Harmonized Commodity Description and 
Coding System (HS) (even if those codes currently cover other products)?  
N/A, relevant for member countries  
 
4) Criteria used when prioritizing trade action on unnecessary or harmful plastics, plastic 
products, and other goods.  
 
Q. Please select from below (and assign a grade of 1 to 5 in order of importance, with 5 being of 
highest importance) the criteria used when prioritizing trade action on particularly unnecessary or 
harmful plastics and plastic products, including single -use plastics and plastic packaging associated 
with international trade . 
N/A, relevant for member countries  
 
Criterion  Order of importance 
(1 to 5)  
Relative importance in total plastics waste generation   
Relative importance in leakage of plastic waste to the environment   
Relative importance of material flows of plastics moved by trade    
Human health and sanitation [effects on]   
Environmental damage [avoided as a result of the action]   
Risk of pollution [reduction in?]   
Food safety and security   
Costs of cleaning up; and losses for tourism, fisheries and shipping   
Potential to negatively impede circularity [how??]   
Single vs multi -use goods [encouraging the shift towards?]   
INF/TE/IDP/RD/129  
 
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  Criterion  Order of importance 
(1 to 5)  
Multi-material, multi -polymer structure [reduce the amount of?]   
Substitutability for the same functionality and cost effectiveness (incl. 
in the health system)   
Negative impact [on non -plastic materials that can substituted for 
plastics]   
Embedded and related (e.g. transport) GHG -emissions   
Technical and economic viability of recycling the product   
Other:   
 
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