U.S. Proposal Calls for Accelerating HCFC Phaseout

September 11th, 2007

Twenty years ago, the Montreal Protocol was signed, and over a hundred companies pledged to reduce a family of chemicals called hydrochlorofluorocarbons (HCFC), which were already known to deteriorate the ozone layer and contribute to global warming. Soon after the passage of that Protocol, I realized there would be a need to enable organizations to track, manage, and minimize their ozone depleting refrigerant emissions, and this was the first software product created by Environmental Support Solutions, the global company of which I’m proud to be the CEO.

So it was with a bit of nostalgia that I read the article in Environmental Leader that the Bush administration plans to push for speedup of the global phaseout of chemicals that destroy the ozone layer and contribute to global warming.

The article quotes a Wall Street Journal story (paid content, accessible only by subscription) that the administration’s proposal will be presented at a Sept. 15 meeting in Montreal, where representatives from 191 nations will discuss toughening the 20-year-old Montreal Protocol, designed to reduce the use of chemicals that create holes in the ozone layer.

According to the article, the U.S. plan would shift the deadlines for phasing out HCFC to 2020 from 2030 for industrial nations and to 2030 from 2040 for developing nations. In addition, the proposal would require developing nations to shrink their production of the chemicals by stages before the 2030 deadline.

This has probably come about because it is common knowledge that global warming is advancing faster than we thought it would when the original protocol was passed.

Tags: global warming hcfc montreal protocol refrigerant wall street journal

Entry Filed under: Sustainability, Greenhouse Gas Emissions