Strengthened Ozone Treaty Provides Powerful Climate Mitigation

In a historic agreement, the Meeting of the Parties (MOP) to the Montreal Protocol on Substances that Deplete the Ozone Layer took action to explicitly address climate change within the ozone regime. The decision, adopted at the September 21, 2007 meeting celebrating the Protocol's 20th Anniversary, speeds up by ten years the phase-out of hydrochlorofluorocarbons (HCFCs), chemicals that destroy the ozone layer and contribute to climate change.

"It's perhaps the most important breakthrough in an environmental negotiation process for at least five or six years," said Achim Steiner, Executive Director of the United Nations Environment Programme, "because it sets a very specific target with an ambitious timetable."

The strengthened ozone treaty will reduce greenhouse gas emissions by 17.5 to 25 billion tons of carbon dioxide-equivalent, provided the transition is managed to avoid substitute chemicals with high global warming potentials. This is significantly more than the initial reduction of five billion tons of carbon dioxide-equivalent required by the Kyoto Protocol from 2008-2012.

The accelerated phase-out will also increase compliance with the Montreal Protocol, for example a step-wise reduction schedule will be instituted. Without the decision, the high growth of HCFCs will delay ozone recovery and reduce compliance with the current HCFC consumption freeze in developing Parties in 2016 and the final phase-out in 2040. Failure to accelerate the HCFC phase-out also will contribute significantly to climate change.

As part of the deal, developed countries committed to help developing countries meet their new phase-out obligations through continued monetary support of the Multilateral Fund, the financial mechanism of the Protocol.

The Institute for Governance & Sustainable Development (IGSD) has focused their efforts the last 18-months on the campaign to turn the ozone treaty into an explicit climate treaty. IGSD is lead by Durwood Zaelke, Director of the INECE Secretariat. The organization worked closely with various other non-profit organizations, notably the Environmental Investigation Agency (EIA) and the Natural Resources Defense Council. IGSD's campaign focused on educating and motivating governments about the twin ozone and climate benefits from accelerating the phase-out of HCFCs.

Numerous other members of INECE played an important role in the successful push to accelerate the phase-out of HCFCs.

Executive Planning Committee (EPC) member Romina Picolotti, Argentina's Secretary of Environment, and one of her top advisors, Ana Maria Kleymeyer, were early and outspoken champions of this issue. Argentina suffers from ozone-related environmental and health impacts due to its close proximity to the Antarctic. Additionally, Argentina was one of the first Parties to submit a formal proposal to strengthen the Montreal Protocol for climate purposes.

"Our success is important for the ozone layer, and even more important for the climate," said Ms. Picolotti. "It shows us what we can do when we have the spirit to cooperate." She added, "Additionally, Durwood Zaelke's relentless international drive on this issue was crucial to our effort to reach the historic global agreement."

Antonio Oposa, Jr., an EPC member and international law expert from the Philippines, contributed greatly to the campaign by representing Micronesia during the final stages of the negotiations. For many small island states like Micronesia, reaching an agreement on this decision was a matter of survival due to the fatal impacts of sea-level rise.

EPC member Donald Kaniaru, from Kenya, edited the book The Montreal Protocol: Celebrating 20 Years of Environmental Progress, which was distributed at the 20th Anniversary meeting of the Protocol. This book tells the success story of this treaty while also focusing on current and future challenges, serving as a resource and guide to all Parties to the Montreal Protocol.

EPC members Antonio Herman Benjamin, Superior Court of Justice in Brazil, and Kunihiko Shimada, Japan's Ministry of the Environment, provided vital insight and guidance to IGSD's campaign.

"Capturing significantly more than Kyoto's initial climate reductions is an extraordinary accomplishment," said Nobel Laureate Mario Molina. "This historic decision marks the first time both developed and developing countries have agreed to mandatory climate reductions. This is a big boost for the post-2012 climate negotiations, and it would not have happened without the tremendous effort by Zaelke and his dedicated team."

The Montreal Protocol used proven governance mechanisms and succeeded in dealing with the ozone problem in a way that has been cost-effective, spurred unprecedented technological innovation, and produced climate mitigation that has kept the world from reaching the "tipping point" for abrupt climate change. The next step for IGSD and others is to bring the lessons of the Montreal Protocol into the post-2012 climate discussion. For more information, read the article entitled Compliance Critical in Climate Change Regimes also found in the "Special Report: Ozone & Climate" section of this newsletter.

Finally, there is still much more than can be done under the Montreal Protocol to mitigate climate change. For example, the Protocol should strengthen its compliance efforts by building on work already underway in the Secretariat, UNEP OzonAction's compliance assistance program, and elsewhere, to promote an ambitious capacity building program. This might be accomplished by linking existing networking activities, such as Green Customs (a UNEP and the World Customs Organization initiative) and the International Network for Environmental Compliance & Enforcement.

For further information: www.igsd.org & www.ozone-climate.org