After two years of dedicated negotiations, world leaders could not agree on a global plastics treaty to counter plastic pollution's escalating environmental, economic, and health threats.

International negotiations to create a legally binding treaty to stem the tide of plastic pollution ended in a stalemate on Monday — pushing talks past their initial deadline and into next year. More than 100 countries have shown support for limits on plastic manufacturing.

Plastic pollution is choking the planet. From the bottom of the Mariana trench to the top of Mount Everest, there is little escaping the problem. Regardless, treaty negotiations to end plastic pollution collapsed on Sunday after the event in Busan, South Korea closed without the nations firmly agreeing to put limits on plastic production.

The failure of recent global talks in Busan, South Korea, to produce a landmark treaty to combat plastic pollution, has underscored the complexities and challenges of addressing one of the planet’s most pressing environmental and climate issues.

Diplomats at a United Nations conference in Busan, South Korea, failed to reach agreement on the world’s first treaty to tackle plastic pollution on Sunday. They said they would reconvene in future months to try again.

A summit many hoped would yield a landmark treaty to tackle a global plastic pollution crisis ended in disappointment after oil- and gas-producing countries pushed back on limiting production

Delegates from close to 200 countries huddled for a week of marathon negotiations but came up short on delivering a treaty.

The world’s nations will wrap up negotiating a treaty this weekend to address the global crisis of plastic pollution.