Takes landmark step in fight against climate pollution  

The 20 biggest world economies have agreed to use the resources of the Montreal Protocol to get rid of a significant group of super greenhouse gases (GHG), on September 6 in St Petersburg, Russia. Sharing this news in a communiqué, the Environmental Investigation Agency (EIA) said that it welcomed the statement and encouraged all countries to join the G20 in supporting a global phase-down of hydrofluorocarbons (HFCs) under the Montreal Protocol – the international ozone treaty.

In addition to the statement by the G20 leaders, the US and China reaffirmed their June 8 agreement on HFCs and “emphasise[d] the importance of the Montreal Protocol, including as a next step through the establishment of an open-ended contact group to consider all relevant issues, including financial and technology support to Article 5 developing countries, cost-effectiveness, safety of substitutes, environmental benefits, and an amendment,” the communiqué highlighted.

The global leaders have taken an important first step towards mitigating one of the main gases responsible for climate change, EIA commented, and pointed out that HFCs were thousands of times more potent than carbon dioxide (CO2), and were primarily used in refrigeration and air conditioning despite the fact that climate-friendly alternatives were already available.

According to EIA, Micronesia, along with the United States, Canada and Mexico have continually, for the past five years, put forward amendments to the Montreal Protocol to include a phase down of HFCs. However, global action on phasing down HFCs had stalled due to countries disagreeing over whether a phase-down should occur under the Montreal Protocol or the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC). In this context, said EIA, the G20 statement resolves the debate by asserting that the phase-down of the consumption and production of HFCs will take place under the Montreal Protocol, while the emission reductions will be accounted for under the UNFCCC, EIA explained.

“Given the international community’s success in effectively and rapidly phasing out ozone-depleting chemicals, we are encouraged that the world’s largest economies have agreed to phase down HFCs under the Montreal Protocol,” said Mark W Roberts, EIA’s Senior Counsel and International Policy Advisor. “We strongly urge the rest of the world to join the members of the G20 in phasing down these super greenhouse gases.”

EIA’s Senior Campaigner Clare Perry added, “Phasing out HFCs is the fastest, most cost-effective climate mitigation measure available and joint global action on HFCs will set an example of how the nations of the world can come together to solve the problem of climate change.”