• The Montreal Protocol on Substances that Deplete the Ozone Layer is an international agreement made in 1987.

• It was designed to stop the production and import of ozone-depleting substances and reduce their concentration in the atmosphere to help protect the earth’s ozone layer.

• It sits under the Vienna Convention for the Protection of the Ozone Layer.

• Its objectives are to promote cooperation on the adverse effects of human activities on the ozone layer.

• India became a Party to the Protocol on 19 June 1992 and since then has ratified the amendments.

• It is an international agreement to gradually reduce the consumption and production of hydrofluorocarbons (HFCs).

• Ozone-depleting substances are chemicals that destroy the earth’s protective ozone layer. They include. 

• Chlorofluorocarbons (CFCs), halons, carbon tetrachloride (CCl4), methyl chloroform (CH3CCl3), hydro Bromo fluorocarbons (HBFCs), hydrochlorofluorocarbons (HCFCs), methyl bromide (CH3Br), bromochloromethane (CH2BrCl)

• Kigali Amendment is a legally binding agreement designed to create rights and obligations in international law.

• While HFCs do not deplete the stratospheric ozone layer, they have high global warming potential ranging from 12 to 14,000, which has an adverse impact on climate.

• The Montreal Protocol, viewed as one of the most successful international treaties, seeks to bring down use of chemicals depleting the planet’s stratospheric ozone.

• The Kigali Amendment that was adopted globally in 2016, and became effective in 2019, aims to limit the use of hydrofluorocarbons (HFCs).

• HFCs are not ozone-depleting, but carry catastrophic warming potential, given they are almost a thousand times more potent than carbon dioxide.

• The Kigali Amendment tasks industrialized nations to cut production and use of HFCs by 85% of the 2011-2013 levels by 2036, while one group of developing nations including China, Brazil and South Africa, will need to cut by 80% from 2020-22 levels by 2045 and another including India and Iran will need to cut 85% from 2024-26 levels by 2047.

• As per official estimates, the pathway will help cut 0.5oC of warming by 2100.

• The Amendment is certainly ambitious, given HFC usage in cooling and refrigeration vis-a-vis the growing need for these with climate change making intense heatwaves more frequent than ever before.

• Given the Kigali Amendment makes HFC reduction legally binding on parties ratifying it, India has committed to chalk out a national phase-out strategy by 2023 and embeds it into its legal framework by 2024.

• India has assumed a leadership role in ozone action under the Montreal Protocol, and its ratification of the Amendment presents a plethora of opportunities, especially in the manufacturing of low warming potential (LWP) refrigerant manufacturing and related innovation.

• The fact that the country came out with a Cooling Action Plan in 2019, and set targets for reducing and offsetting the climate-threatening (and otherwise planet harming) effects of cooling and refrigeration is evidence of exemplary climate responsibility.

• India is also one of the very few nations whose climate commitments put it on the path to pulling its weight to keep warming under 2oC by 2100.

• Developed nations that have shirked responsibility on climate action, despite the global celebration of their ‘ambitious’ action, need to take note.

• Beyond the Montreal Protocol, as it exists now, the world needs to act on many ozone-damaging emissions.

• Anthropogenic emission of nitrous oxide plays a significant role in stratospheric ozone depletion directly and by moderating depletion by chlorinated chemicals.

• Also, space exploration poses a significant threat to the ozone layer that had begun healing from historical depletion following action under the Montreal Protocol.

India’s achievements in Montreal Protocol and Kigali Amendment:

• India has for decades played a key role in bringing about the success of the Montreal protocol, the hugely successful international environmental treaty on which the Kigali Amendment is based.

• India’s ratification of the Kigali Amendment sends a strong signal to the rest of world about its commitment to the treaty moving forward, encouraging other countries to ratify and signalling that a rapid global market transition is soon to begin.

• India will develop a national strategy for phasing down HFCs in the coming year, in consultation with the industry, and conclude by 2023.

• The government also plans to update its existing legal framework by mid-2024 to phase out ozone-depleting substances (the Ozone Depleting Substances (Regulation and Control) Rules to allow appropriate control of the production and consumption of Hydrofluorocarbons to ensure compliance with the Kigali Amendment.

• India’s commitment to phasing down HFCs will usher in global and domestic environmental and economic benefits.

• It will give a boost to India’s domestic manufacturing and employment generation goals, spurring domestic innovation and attracting international investments.

• The global marketplace is shifting to low-GWP refrigerant production, and early adoption of low-GWP refrigerants will lead to a competitive advantage.

• Manufacturers and stakeholders agree that the Montreal Protocol is an effective vehicle for refrigerant market transformation, including room ACs.

• Early adoption now signals to the industry that India will continue to have strong demand for low-GWP equipment; this will help attract industry to manufacture in India.

• Ratifying the Kigali Amendment demonstrates that India has a plan to provide much-needed cooling for millions while balancing the need to protect the environment.

• Adopting low-GWP refrigerants will enable India to achieve both its development and climate action targets.

Conclusion: