03-09-2021 | 16:54 PM
Kigali Amendment to Montreal Protocol
The Union Cabinet has given its approval for ratification of the Kigali Amendment to the Montreal Protocol on Substances that Deplete the Ozone Layer for phase down of Hydrofluorocarbons (HFCs) by India.
Key Points
• It comes close on the heels of similar decisions by the United States and China, the world’s largest producers and consumers of HFCs. 122 countries had ratified the Kigali Amendment by the end of July 2021.
• India now requires to reduce its HFCs usage by 80% by 2047. China and the US have to achieve the same in 2045 and 2034.
• Under the ratification, hydrofluorocarbons (HFCs) will be phased down early which in turn will make the Indian industry globally competitive across climate-friendly cooling products.
• Ratification provided a big opportunity to India to be on course for the early phase-down of HFCs by means of domestic innovation.
About Montreal Protocol:
• It is an international treaty that regulates the production and consumption of nearly 100 man-made chemicals referred to as ozone-depleting substances (ODS).
• The ODS, when released to the atmosphere, damages the ‘stratospheric ozone layer that protects the earth against the harmful levels of UV radiation from the sun.
• It mandated the complete phase-out of chlorofluorocarbons or CFCs and other ODS.
NOTE: Kigali Amendment to the Montreal Protocol is an international agreement that seeks to gradually reduce the consumption and production of hydrofluorocarbons (HFCs). This is a legally binding agreement that has been designed to create rights and obligations in international law.
