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Probe unveils Chinese firms at the forefront illegal CFCs trade |
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A new report claims that firms in mainland China play a lead
role in the illegal global trade of ODSs. The study released
by the international green group Environmental Investigation
Agency (EIA) describes how such firms “routinely circumvent
government controls, mislabel and mis-declare CFCs in order to
smuggle these around the world.” The study lays down findings
from eight years of undercover investigations into the global
illegal CFC trade.
Posing as chemical dealers, EIA investigators visited a number
of firms in Zhejiang province, on the coast south of Shanghai,
which the report paints as the centre of the nation’s CFC
industry. EIA alleges that firms in the province offered to
sell 135 t of illegal CFCs, as well as to guarantee its
continued supply. The initial order was equivalent to more
than 12 per cent of the entire quantity of CFCs available
under the protocol to China for all its exports and
stockpiling needs in 2006, the report said. The most
frequently used method to smuggle CFCs was by mis-declaring
them as alternative chemicals that are not controlled by the
Montreal Protocol. China ratified the protocol in 1991 and
later accepted a multimillion dollar package to bring the end
of production forward by three years.
Website:
www.thestandard.com.hk |
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Governments take forward fight to save ozone layer |
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Member states of the Montreal Protocol have agreed to a budget
of US$470 million to support the continuing transition by
developing countries to CFC-free refrigerators and other
ozone-safe technologies during the three-year period
2006-2008. The strong push to complete the developing
countries’ phase-out of ODS reflects continued international
concern about the damaged condition of the stratospheric ozone
layer. The newly agreed funding package would supplement the
almost US$2 billion already disbursed since 1990 by the
Protocol’s Multilateral Fund on capacity building and projects
for phasing out ODS.
“Completing the phase-out of CFCs by developing countries is
essential for returning the stratospheric ozone layer to
health,” according to Mr. Marco Gonzalez, Executive Secretary
of the Protocol, which was negotiated under the auspices of
the United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP). The meeting
also concurred on continuing the phase-out by developed
countries of several remaining uses of CFCs and methyl
bromide. The phase-out deadlines for these countries have
already passed; however, the Protocol allows governments to
request for specific, time-limited “critical-use exemptions”
when technically or economically feasible alternatives are not
available.
Other issues addressed at the members’ meeting include the
challenge of reducing illegal trafficking in CFCs and other
substances and a recent joint report of the Montreal
Protocol’s Technology and Economics Assessment Panel and the
Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change on ozone and global
warming interlinkages entitled “Safeguarding the Ozone Layer
and Global Climate System”. Contact: Mr. Michael Williams.
Tel: +41 (22) 9178 242; E-mail: michael.williams@unep.ch.
(Website: www.unep.org)Member states of the Montreal Protocol
have agreed to a budget of US$470 million to support the
continuing transition by developing countries to CFC-free
refrigerators and other ozone-safe technologies during the
three-year period 2006-2008. The strong push to complete the
developing countries’ phase-out of ODS reflects continued
international concern about the damaged condition of the
stratospheric ozone layer. The newly agreed funding package
would supplement the almost US$2 billion already disbursed
since 1990 by the Protocol’s Multilateral Fund on capacity
building and projects for phasing out ODS.
“Completing the phase-out of CFCs by developing countries is
essential for returning the stratospheric ozone layer to
health,” according to Mr. Marco Gonzalez, Executive Secretary
of the Protocol, which was negotiated under the auspices of
the United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP). The meeting
also concurred on continuing the phase-out by developed
countries of several remaining uses of CFCs and methyl
bromide. The phase-out deadlines for these countries have
already passed; however, the Protocol allows governments to
request for specific, time-limited “critical-use exemptions”
when technically or economically feasible alternatives are not
available.
Other issues addressed at the members’ meeting include the
challenge of reducing illegal trafficking in CFCs and other
substances and a recent joint report of the Montreal
Protocol’s Technology and Economics Assessment Panel and the
Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change on ozone and global
warming interlinkages entitled “Safeguarding the Ozone Layer
and Global Climate System”.
Contact: Mr. Michael Williams. Tel: +41 (22) 9178 242
E-mail:
michael.williams@unep.ch
Website:
www.unep.org |
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Workshop for customs officers |
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The National Ozone Unit (NOU) of the Afghan National
Environmental Protection Agency (NEPA), together with UNEP and
the General Directorate of Customs of the Afghan Ministry of
Finance (MoF), had organized a “National Train-the-Trainers
Workshop for Customs Officers on Monitoring and Control of
ODS” during November last year. About 40 participants from
Afghanistan’s customs department, including border check
posts, the Ministry of Trade, the Chamber of Commerce and
Pakistan’s Customs Office attended the three-day workshop.
Training was imparted by members of NOU, NEPA, India’s
National Academy of Customs, Excise and Narcotics and UNEP.
The train-the-trainers workshop concentrated on Afghanistan’s
international commitments under the Montreal Protocol and the
national obligations for its implementation. Information on
regulations and licensing system in Afghanistan was combined
with practical training on how to identify ODS with ODS
identifiers and on the reporting system. The Deputy Director
General of NEPA formally handed over Afghanistan’s first ODS
identifier, donated by the Government of Iran, to the Director
General of the Customs Department.
Afghanistan ratified the Vienna Convention for the Protection
of Ozone Layer and its Montreal Protocol on substances that
deplete the Ozone Layer, along with all four amendments, on
17th June 2004.
Contact: Mr. Asif Zaidi, Programme Manager, United Nations
Environment Programme; Or The National Environmental
Protection Agency (NEPA), Darulaman, Kabul, Afghanistan. Tel:
+93 (079) 325 678/(070) 276 431
E-mail:
asif.zaidi@unep.ch
Or Mr. Zahid Ullah Hamdard, Ozone Officer, The National Ozone
Unit, National Environmental Protection Agency (NEPA), Darul
Aman Road, Kabul, Afghanistan. Tel: +93 (079) 565 458
E-mail:
zahidhamdard1@yahoo.co.in
Website:
www.unama-afg.org |
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Initiative to protect ozone layer |
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In an attempt to get in tune with a number of environmental
conventions, the government of Indonesia will begin
restricting the entry of ODS into the country. The Office of
the State Minister for the Environment and the Directorate
General of Customs and Excise signed a memorandum of
understanding (MoU) to jointly control, prevent, detect and
examine the documentation of ODS consignments arriving in the
nation. Under the eight-point agreement, the environmental
ministry will train customs and excise officials to increase
their capacity to identify these substances.
During the signing ceremony for the MoU, officials from the
environmental ministry presented 20 refrigerant identifier
devices to the customs and excise director general, Mr. Eddy
Abdurrachman, to be used to help identify ODS at entry points
across Indonesia. Mr. Abdurrachman stated that the US$2,000
devices would be installed at major airports and seaports
across the nation.
Website:
www.thejakartapost.com |
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China imposes restrictions on CFC-113 production |
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The Chinese government has prohibited the production and
consumption of CFC-113. This decision is in line the nation’s
commitment to phase out ODS production and consumption. The
State Environmental Protection Administration (SEPA) has
warned that any units or individuals who continue to produce
and use CFC-113 will be punished. As per the Montreal
Protocol, all developed countries have agreed to phase out the
chemicals by 1 January 2005 while the deadline for developing
countries is 1 January 2015. China has pledged to phase out
its major ODS production and consumption by 2010.
Website:
www.news.xinhuanet.com |
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Korea stipulates limit on production and import of
ODS |
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The Republic of Korea’s Ministry of Commerce, Industry and
Energy has stipulated a ceiling on the amount of combined
production and import of ODS in a meeting to adjust supply and
demand of such substances. Under the Montreal Protocol on
Substances that Deplete the Ozone Layer, Korea and other
parties to the pact have been reducing gradually CFCs, halons
as well as other substances in terms of production and imports
for some of them by 2010. As such, the cap on various ODS are
as follows:
- Chlorofluorocarbons – 2,975 t, down 67 per cent from the
reference quantity;
- Carbon tetrachloride – 42 t, down 88 per cent;
- Methyl chloroform – 303 t, down 88 per cent;
- Halon – 1,471 t, down 60 per cent; and
- Hydrochlorofluorocarbons – 3,972 t, just as applied for
by the industry.
Website:
www.kois.go.kr |
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Philippines issues warning on mislabelled
refrigerants |
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In the Philippines, the Department of Environment and Natural
Resources (DENR) has sounded an alert warning car and
refrigerator owners about the proliferation of fake
refrigerants. Legitimate air-conditioner and refrigerator
service shop owners and technicians have been complaining
about the rampant sale of mislabelled refrigerant cylinders.
The modus operandi involves labelling refrigerant cylinders as
R-134a when they actually contain CFCs. Such cylinders may
also contain a mix of CFC and R-134a to match the pressure of
pure R-134a, making the mixture difficult to detect. To avoid
being victimized, DENR said the public should patronize only
legitimate repair shops that have been trained either by the
Department of Trade and Industry or the Technical Education
and Skills Development Authority, and are equipped with
refrigerant identifiers. DENR is regulating the importation of
CFCs in compliance with the nation’s commitment to the
Montreal Protocol.
Website:
www.visayandailystar.com |
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Philippines to axe ozone-depleting refrigerants |
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Ozone-depleting refrigerants have been banned in the
Philippines. This measure is anticipated to affect motorists
with vehicles that are at least six years old, manufacturers
of foam mattresses, inhalers for asthma patients and others
relying solely on CFCs. Environment and Natural Resources
Secretary, Mr. Michael Defensor, had earlier urged owners of
older cars that utilize CFC-12 or R-12 type of refrigerants in
their air-conditioning systems to move over to CFC-free R-134a
that are being used in newer vehicles.
Website:
www.terradaily.com |
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Buying power vs. ODS |
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The Philippines has taken an innovative approach in its fight
against ODS, consumer’s buying power. Orientation seminars and
workshops are being conducted in every target sector to
provide basic information about the CFC phase-out programme.
The orientation, with the theme “Save the Ozone Layer: Use
Your Buying Power Wisely,” is being organized by DENR’s
Philippine Ozone Desk, in cooperation with the Department of
Trade and Industry’s (DTI) Bureau of Trade Regulation and
Consumer Protection.
Consumers are being advised to look closely at labels of
consumer goods, buy the firmest and densest foams, and for
asthma patients, select inhalers that do not contain CFC – all
these being some of the things that the public can do to help
save the ozone layer. Consumers are also being urged to
support service shops accredited by DTI, to ensure that their
technicians are capable of handling refrigerants and are not
recharging their air-conditioners or refrigerators with
incompatible refrigerants.
Website:
www.pia.gov.ph |
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