Across the globe, from the bustling streets of Manila to the remote communities of Alaska, a toxic crisis is unfolding that threatens the most fundamental human right of all – the right to health. Plastic pollution has become so pervasive that it now infiltrates every aspect of human existence, yet its devastating impact on human health remains largely invisible in too many policy discussions.
The science is unequivocal: plastic pollution is a health crisis. Microplastics have been detected in human blood, lungs, placenta, and breast milk. Chemical additives in plastics – including endocrine disruptors, carcinogens, and neurotoxins – are linked to cancer, reproductive disorders, developmental delays, and immune system dysfunction.
Research shows a 30% increased rate of leukaemia in neighbouring communities as well as increased rates of breast cancer among men and women working in plastics production facilities with women more than twice as high as in the general population. Communities in “Cancer Alley” – the stretch of Louisiana where petrochemical plants cluster – experience cancer rates that are 50 times the national average. Meanwhile, children exposed to plastic chemicals in utero show measurable cognitive impairments and behavioural changes that persist throughout their lives.
We do not have choice to be impacted by plastic, it is in our food, our water and the air we breathe. Whether you live near a petrochemical plant, or in the Pyrenees, your health will no doubt have been under attack by tiny plastic particles with a toxic impact.
The legal landscape is beginning to recognise this reality. In the landmark case of Urgenda Foundation v. State of the Netherlands, the Dutch Supreme Court ruled that governments have a human rights obligation to protect citizens from environmental harm, setting a precedent that extends to plastic pollution. Similarly, in the ongoing case of Sacchi v. Argentina, young climate activists are arguing that plastic pollution violates children’s rights under the UN Convention on the Rights of the Child.
In April 2025, the UN Human Rights Council adopted a resolution recognising the human right to a clean, healthy, and sustainable environment, explicitly linking this right to the issue of plastic pollution. The resolution emphasises the need for states to take decisive action to address plastic pollution throughout its lifecycle, acknowledging its severe impacts on human rights and the environment.
Article 25 of the Universal Declaration of Human Right’s, (right to a standard of living adequate for health and well-being), Article 24 of the Convention on the Rights of the Child (right to the highest attainable standard of health) or the Article 12 of the International Covenant on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights, (right to the highest attainable standard of physical and mental health). Plastic pollution is guilty of violating all.
This is precisely why Higginson Strategy proudly supports the Plastic Health Council, a coalition of leading health scientists working to ensure that human health considerations are central to the UN Global Plastics Treaty negotiations.
As we approach the crucial INC 5.2 negotiations in August, the stakes could not be higher. The treaty represents our best opportunity to address plastic pollution as the human rights emergency it truly is. Yet certain petro-states with high levels of plastic production are determined to ensure the Treaty focuses at the end of the pipeline, recycling, ignoring the toxic chemicals that make plastic production a threat to human health from the very beginning.
The Plastic Health Council is calling for the Treaty to include binding provisions that address the full lifecycle of plastics – from production to disposal. This means restricting the most harmful chemical additives, requiring health impact assessments for new plastic chemicals, and establishing a precautionary principle to the chemicals included in everyday products.
But systemic change requires more than scientific evidence and legal frameworks. It demands recognition that access to a healthy environment free from toxic pollution is not a privilege, but a fundamental human right. Just as we would not tolerate lead in our children’s toys or asbestos in our buildings, we cannot accept a world where plastic pollution systematically harms human health, particularly among those least able to protect themselves.
The window for meaningful action is rapidly closing. Every day of delay means more children born with plastic chemicals in their bloodstream, more communities exposed to toxic emissions, and more violations of the basic human right to health. The upcoming negotiations in August represent a critical moment to transform our approach to plastic pollution from a waste management problem to the human rights crisis it truly is.
The question is not whether we can afford to act, but whether we can afford not to.
Jacob Robinson, Senior Account Manager at Higginson Strategy