Propunere UE pentru reducerea treptată a HFC-urilor pe baza Protocolul de la Montreal

Uniunea Europeană ( UE) a prezentat o propunere de modificare a Protocolului de la Montreal pentru a controla hidrofluorocarburile (HFC) utilizate în refrigerare, aer condiționat, protecția împotriva incendiilor, aerosoli și spume. Măsura UE urmează propuneri similare depuse începând cu anul 2009 de către Statele Unite ale Americii, Canada, Mexic și Micronezia, și ar reduce în mod semnificativ HFC în tările dezvoltate, urmând un program de reducere treptată  în acord cu Regulamentul UE F-Gas.

“The EU clearly expects developed countries to lead by example,” said Clare Perry, Head of Climate at the Environmental Investigation Agency (EIA). “The EU has upped the ante significantly and is now calling on other developed countries to match it.”

In developing countries, the EU proposes a new approach, aimed at initially limiting the growth of HFCs, followed by an agreement to negotiate a phase-down schedule by 2020.

“The EU proposal is trying to be sensitive to the fact that HFCs are generally used to replace ozone-depleting HCFCs, which developing countries have only just begun to phase-out under the Montreal Protocol,” said Perry.

“For this reason, HFCs cannot be considered in isolation and this is the first proposal to try and address that specifically within an HFC amendment proposal – as such, it has the potential to unlock negotiations.”

The EU estimates global cumulative reductions in all countries would amount to 127 gigatonnes of CO₂-equivalent (Gt CO₂-eq) over 40 years.

The EU proposal will be considered at the upcoming Open-Ended Working Group (OEWG) in Paris in July, and again at the Meeting of the Parties in Dubai in November.