In an effort to raise awareness of demands for a treaty to reduce plastic pollution, Greenpeace activists boarded a tanker off the coast of South Korea on Saturday, according to the environmental organisation.
With only one day remaining until the discussions are scheduled to conclude, there is no indication of consensus despite the fact that nearly 200 countries are in Busan to negotiate the pact.
The tanker Buena Alba, which is anchored near the Hanwha TotalEnergies complex, was supposed to pick up propylene, which is used to make plastic, according to Greenpeace.
“The activists boarded the vessel peacefully and met no reaction from the vessel crew,” said Greenpeace spokeswoman Angelica Pago.
“We painted ‘PLASTIC KILLS’ on the side of the vessel and the climbers successfully set up a camp,” she told AFP.
“They intend to stay in order to continue putting pressure on the negotiators to resist fossil fuel and petrochemical industry interference in the talks and to deliver a treaty that firmly cuts plastic production.”
Police had been “deployed on the ship, and we are making warning announcements to facilitate a safe disembarkation,” a coast guard spokesperson for South Korea told AFP.
If there were any “illegal elements” to the protest, he stressed, a “thorough investigation” will be conducted.
Attempts to come to a consensus on reducing plastic pollution have stagnated over a number of important issues, such as whether or not to reduce the manufacture of new plastics.
Although a number of states that produce a lot of oil are strongly opposed, dozens of nations, supported by environmental organisations, maintain that a pact without production cuts will not resolve the issue.
