United Nations negotiators opened a 10-day session in Geneva on Tuesday in what they call a last chance to seal the world’s first legally binding treaty to curb plastic pollution. The sixth round of the Intergovernmental Negotiating Committee brings together representatives from 193 countries and more than 1,000 observers who are expected to decide whether the pact will tackle plastics across their full life-cycle or concentrate on waste management. Talks have become increasingly polarised. The European Union and a coalition of small island states are pressing for caps on virgin plastic production and restrictions on hazardous chemicals. Oil-exporting nations, led by Saudi Arabia and Russia, together with the United States delegation, favour voluntary measures that focus on recycling and disposal, arguing that strict limits could hamper industry. Diplomats say the same split derailed the previous round in Busan and could again block consensus unless negotiators resort to majority voting allowed under draft rules. Mounting scientific evidence is adding urgency. A Lancet report released on the eve of the meeting estimates plastic-related disease and premature death already cost the global economy at least US$1.5 trillion a year. It launches a new "Lancet Countdown on Health and Plastics" to track impacts ranging from cancers to reproductive harm. Separately, researchers reported that brain samples collected in 2024 contained 50 percent more microplastics than those taken in 2016, underscoring concerns about human exposure. The Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development warns that, without intervention, annual plastic production will more than double from 475 million tonnes in 2022 to about 1.2 billion tonnes by 2060, while the UN projects plastic pollution could triple by 2040. Delegates have until 14 August to decide whether the treaty will include production limits, financing for clean-up in developing economies and controls on thousands of potentially toxic additives—issues that will determine whether the accord can meaningfully stem what health experts call a "grave and growing" threat.