Whisper it, but the boom in plastic production could be about to come to a juddering halt | Geoffrey Lean

A plastics treaty is on the cards - and it could join the rescue of the ozone layer as a landmark success in environmental diplomacy

Plastic production has soared some 30-fold since it came into widespread use in the 1960s. We now churn out about 430m tonnes a year, easily outweighing the combined mass of all 8 billion people alive. Left unabated, it continues to accelerate: plastic consumption is due to nearly double by 2050.

Now there is a chance that this huge growth will stop, even go into reverse. This month in Paris, the world's governments agreed to draft a new treaty to control plastics. The UN says it could cut production by a massive 80% by 2040.

Geoffrey Lean is a specialist environment correspondent and author