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UPSC CURRENT AFFAIRS – 08th April 2025

Home / UPSC / Current Affairs / UNHRC adopts resolution linking plastic pollution, ocean protection and human right to a healthy environment

UNHRC adopts resolution linking plastic pollution, ocean protection and human right to a healthy environment

Why in News?

UNHRC’s 2025 resolution recognised the linkage between plastic pollution, ocean protection, and the human right to a clean, healthy, and sustainable environment.

UNHRC adopts resolution linking plastic pollution, ocean protection and human right to a healthy environment

Introduction

  • In a first, the United Nations Human Rights Council (UNHRC) passed a historic resolution in its 58th session which, for the first time ever, acknowledges the interlinkage of plastic pollution, ocean conservation, and the right to a clean, healthy and sustainable environment.
  • Adopted unanimously, the resolution marks a turning point in the global conversation on environmental protection and human rights.

Importance of the Resolution

  •  It represents the first unified recognition by UN member states that plastic pollution poses significant risks to human rights.

  • It underscores that the combined impacts of plastic pollution, climate change, and biodiversity loss endanger the health of oceans and, consequently, the enjoyment of fundamental human rights.

  • Restates the 2021 UNHRC recognition and 2022 UNGA resolution regarding the right to a healthy environment.

  • Strengthens the human rights dimension of global environmental governance

Key Features of the Resolution

  • Describes the ocean as one biome, vital for human life and the exercise of human rights.
  • Acknowledges the uneven effect of ocean degradation on:
    • Coastal populations
    • Small Island Developing States (SIDS)
    • Vulnerable groups
  • Demands an approach to ocean governance informed by human rights, emphasizing:
    • Inclusion
    • Public involvement
    • Protection of vulnerable communities
    • Alignment with Forthcoming Global Events
  • The resolution paves the way before two decisive conferences:
    • UN Ocean Conference, Nice, France (June 9–13, 2025)
    • Global Plastic Treaty Negotiations, Geneva (August 5–14, 2025)
    • Declares that human rights should be central to all future global arrangements on plastic and ocean management.

Guiding Principles and Calls to Action

  • Precautionary Principle: To avoid further harm to marine and coastal environments.
  • Calls for comprehensive action throughout the plastics life cycle – production through disposal.
  • Acknowledges the transboundary character of plastic pollution, including microplastic spread.
  • Encourages restoration and sustainable biodiversity management by:
    • Transparency and accountability
    • Community participation
    • Respect for Indigenous knowledge systems

Broader Implications

  • Strengthens the Human Rights Council’s mandate as a linkage between environmental and human rights perspectives.
  • Promotes international cooperation, including:
    • Early warning systems
    • Climate resilience measures
    • Justice-centered environmental action

Conclusion

  • This decision marks a paradigm shift by specifically connecting environmental degradation with human rights abuses.
  • It provides the framework for an overarching, rights-based global environmental system, especially regarding ocean governance and plastic pollution, as countries gear up for final global negotiations in 2025.

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