Recent International Developments in Saving the Ozone Layer

U.S., Canada, Mexico Jointly Propose Steep HFC Cuts to Protect the Climate System

On September 15, 2009, the United States, Canada, and Mexico proposed to add hydrofluorocarbon (HFC) controls to the Montreal Protocol. HFCs are fluorinated compounds used as refrigerants, solvents, and in other industrial and consumer applications. When released into the atmosphere, HFCs contribute to climate change. In preparation for the 21st Meeting of the Montreal Protocol Parties in November, the U.S. submitted to the United Nations Environment Programme Ozone Secretariat a joint North American proposal by the U.S., Canadian, and Mexican governments that builds on an amendment proposal formally submitted by the Federated States of Micronesia and Mauritius earlier this year. This collaborative effort demonstrates a new resolve by the three countries to address shared environmental issues collectively.

Under the North American proposal, production and consumption of HFCs would be addressed through the Montreal Protocol on Substances that Deplete the Ozone Layer. Although HFCs pose no threat to the stratospheric ozone layer, they are potent greenhouse gases and were created as alternatives to ozone-depleting substances. As the demand for air conditioning and refrigeration increases globally, and as countries accelerate their efforts to phase out ozone-depleting substances, countries could turn increasingly to HFCs. The proposed amendment would provide significant climate protection benefits, in particular by reducing projected increases in the use of HFCs in many countries. Preliminary estimates undertaken by the United States suggest cumulative HFC reductions through 2050 of 76,000 to 83,000 million metric tons of CO₂ equivalent (MMTCO₂eq). Controlling HFCs sends an important signal to markets about the need to develop new alternatives that do not harm the ozone layer or climate system.

A copy of EPA's analysis of HFC Production and Consumption controls is available here. (8 pp, 54 KB, About PDF)

A copy of the proposal is available here. (8 pp, 23 KB, About PDF)

International Day for the Preservation of the Ozone Layer 2009

All UN Nations in the World Agree to Protect Earth's Ozone Layer

Every UN Nation in the world has now officially ratified the Vienna Convention for the Protection of the Ozone Layer and the Montreal Protocol on Substances that Deplete the Ozone Layer. Timor Leste's recent ratification brings the total number of Parties to 196. This is a historic achievement; these two treaties are the first treaties ever to achieve universal ratification. The United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP) has provided banners celebrating this achievement here.

Accomplishments from the 19th Meeting of the Parties (2007) in Montreal, Canada

Environmental Benefits of the New, Stronger HCFC Phaseout Agreement

At the 19th Meeting of the Parties in Montreal on September 17-21, 2007, the Parties agreed to more aggressively phase out ozone-depleting hydrochlorofluorocarbons (HCFCs). The agreement to adjust the phase-out schedule for HCFCs is expected to reduce emissions of HCFCs to the atmosphere by 47 percent, compared to the prior commitments under the treaty over the 30-year period of 2010 to 2040. For the developing countries, the agreement means there will be about a 58 percent reduction in HCFCs emission over the 30 year period.

Read more about the HCFC reductions for the U.S., or view a graph showing the HCFC reductions in developing countries, reflecting the agreement at the 19th Meeting in Montreal.

The climate benefits of the stronger HCFC agreement will depend on technology choices of the transition from HCFCs during the 30 year time frame of the HCFC phase out. The estimated climate benefit of the new, stronger HCFC phase out may be as much as 9,000 million metric tons of carbon dioxide equivalent (MMTCO₂eq), or the equivalent of removing the climate emissions from 55 million U.S. passenger cars each year, for the next 30 years. This means the new, stronger HCFC agreement is equivalent to eliminating the annual greenhouse gas emissions from 40 percent of all U.S. passenger cars each year, for the next 30 years.

Another way of explaining the climate benefit of the new, stronger HCFC phaseout agreement is to say it is equivalent to eliminating the climate emissions from the electricity needed by 40 million U.S. households each year, for the next 30 years, which would be eliminating the climate emissions from the electricity needed by 40 percent of U.S. households each year, for the next 30 years.

Read analyses of climate benefits of the overall HCFC agreement at the 19th Meeting in Montreal.

Read analyses of ozone and climate benefits of the U.S. proposal (PDF) (43 pp, 262K, About PDF).

Read more about the HCFC phaseout in the U.S.