HCFC-related Decisions of the Parties to the Montreal Protocol

The following decisions related to HCFCs have been taken by the Parties to the Montreal Protocol.

This information was taken from the Multilateral Fund Secretariat's Policies, Procedures, Guidelines and Criteria document.

The list is organised by decision number.

See also the related decisions taken by the Executive Committee of the Multilateral Fund for the Implementation of the Montreal Protocol.

Contents

• Decision V/8
• Decision VIII/13
• Decision XI/28
• Decision XIV/10
• Decision XV/3
• Decision XIX/6
• Decision XIX/8

Decision V/8

The Fifth Meeting of the Parties decided that each Party is requested, as far as possible and as appropriate, to give consideration in selecting alternatives and substitutes, bearing in mind, inter alia, Article 2F, paragraph 7, of the Copenhagen Amendment regarding hydrochlorofluorocarbons, to:

(a) environmental aspects;
(b) human health and safety aspects;
(c) the technical feasibility, the commercial availability and performance;
(d) economic aspects, including cost comparisons among different technology options taking into account:

(i) all interim steps leading to final ODS elimination;
(ii) social costs;
(iii) dislocation costs, etc.; and

(e) country-specific circumstances and due local expertise.

(UNEP/OzL.Pro/5/12 Decision V/8 (section 1).

Decision VIII/13

The Eighth Meeting of the Parties decided:

1. that UNEP distribute to the Parties of the Montreal Protocol a list containing the HCFCs applications which have been identified by the Technology and Economic Assessment Panel, after having taken into
account the following:

(a) the heading should read "Possible Applications of HCFCs";
(b) the list should include a chapeau stating that the list is intended to facilitate collection of data on HCFC consumption, and does not imply that HCFCs are needed for the listed applications;
(c) the use as fire extinguishers should be added to the list;
(d) the use as aerosols, as propellant, solvent or main component, should be included, following the same structure as for other applications;

2. that the Technology and Economic Assessment Panel and its Technical Options Committee be requested to prepare, for the Ninth Meeting of the Parties, a list of available alternatives to each of the HCFC applications which are mentioned in the now available list.
(UNEP/OzL.Pro.8/12, Decision VIII/13).

Decision XI/28

The Eleventh Meeting of the Parties decided to request the Technology and Economic Assessment Panel to study and report by 30 April 2003 at the latest on the problems and options of Article 5 Parties in obtaining HCFCs in the light of the freeze on the production of HCFCs in non-Article 5 Parties in the year 2004. This report should analyze whether HCFCs are available to Article 5 Parties in sufficient quantity and quality and at affordable prices, taking into account the 15 per cent allowance to meet the basic domestic needs of the Article
5 Parties and the surplus quantities available from the consumption limit allowed to the non-Article 5 Parties. The Parties, at their Fifteenth Meeting in the year 2003, shall consider this report for the purpose of addressing problems, if any, brought out by the report of the Technology and Economic Assessment Panel.
(UNEP/OzL.Pro.11/10, Decision XI/28).

Decision XIV/10

The Fourteenth Meeting of the Parties, noting that the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change and the Technology and Economic Assessment Panel are invited by the Convention on Climate Change to develop a balanced scientific, technical and policy-relevant special report as outlined in their responses to a request by the Subsidiary Body for Scientific and Technological Advice of the Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC/SBSTA/2002/MISC.23), decided to request the Technology and Economic Assessment Panel to work with the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change in preparing the report mentioned above and to address all areas in one single integrated report to be finalized by early 2005. The report should be completed in time to be submitted to the Open-ended Working Group for consideration in so far as it relates to actions to address ozone depletion and the Subsidiary Body for Scientific and Technological Advice of the Convention on Climate Change simultaneously.
(UNEP/OzL.Pro.14/9, Decision XIV/10).

Decision XV/3

The Fifteenth Meeting of the Parties decided:

1. that the Parties to the Beijing Amendment will determine their obligations to ban the import and export of controlled substances in group I of Annex C (hydrochlorofluorocarbons) with respect to States and regional economic organizations that are not parties to the Beijing Amendment by January 1 2004 in accordance with the following:

(a) the term “State not party to this Protocol” in Article 4, paragraph 9 does not apply to those States operating under Article 5, paragraph 1, of the Protocol until January 1, 2016 when, in accordance with the Copenhagen and Beijing Amendments, hydrochlorofluorocarbon production and consumption control measures will be in effect for States that operate under Article 5, paragraph 1, of the Protocol;

(b) the term “State not party to this Protocol” includes all other States and regional economic integration organizations that have not agreed to be bound by the Copenhagen and Beijing Amendments;

(c) recognizing, however, the practical difficulties imposed by the timing associated with the adoption of the foregoing interpretation of the term “State not party to this Protocol,” paragraph 1 (b) shall apply unless such a State has by 31 March 2004: (i) notified the Secretariat that it intends to ratify, accede or accept the Beijing Amendment as soon as possible; (ii) certified that it is in full compliance with Articles 2, 2A to 2G and Article 4 of the Protocol, as amended by the Copenhagen Amendment; (iii) submitted data on (i) and (ii) above to the Secretariat, to be updated on 31 March 2005, in which case that State shall fall outside the definition of “State not party to this Protocol” until the conclusion of the Seventeenth Meeting of the Parties;

2. that the Secretariat shall transmit data received under paragraph 1 (c) above to the Implementation Committee and the Parties;

3. that the Parties shall consider the implementation and operation of the foregoing decision at the Sixteenth Meeting of the Parties, in particular taking into account any comments on the data submitted by States by 31 March 2004 under paragraph 1 (c) above that the Implementation Committee may make.
(UNEP/OzL.Pro.15/9, Decision XV/3).

Decision XIX/6

The Nineteenth Meeting of the Parties agree to accelerate the phase out of production and consumption of hydrochlorofluorocarbons (HCFCs), by way of an adjustment in accordance with paragraph 9 of Article 2 of the Montreal Protocol and as contained in annex III to the report of the Nineteenth Meeting of the Parties, on the basis of the following:

1. for Parties operating under paragraph 1 of Article 5 of the Protocol (Article 5 Parties), to choose as the baseline the average of the 2009 and 2010 levels of, respectively, consumption and production; and

2. to freeze, at that baseline level, consumption and production in 2013;

3. for Parties operating under Article 2 of the Protocol (Article 2 Parties) to have completed the accelerated phase out of production and consumption in 2020, on the basis of the following reduction steps:

(a) by 2010 of 75 per cent;

(b) by 2015 of 90 per cent;

(c) while allowing 0.5 per cent for servicing the period 2020–2030;

4. for Article 5 Parties to have completed the accelerated phase out of production and consumption in 2030, on the basis of the following reduction steps:

(a) by 2015 of 10 per cent;

(b) by 2020 of 35 per cent;

(c) by 2025 of 67.5 per cent;

(d) while allowing for servicing an annual average of 2.5per cent during the period 2030–2040;

5. to agree that the funding available through the Multilateral Fund for the Implementation of the Montreal Protocol in the upcoming replenishments shall be stable and sufficient to meet all agreed incremental costs to enable Article 5 Parties to comply with the accelerated phase out schedule both for production and consumption sectors as set out above, and based on that understanding, to also direct the Executive Committee of the Multilateral Fund to make the necessary changes to the eligibility criteria related to the post-1995 facilities and second conversions;

6. to direct the Executive Committee, in providing technical and financial assistance, to pay particular attention to Article 5 Parties with low volume and very low volume consumption of HCFCs;

7. to direct the Executive Committee to assist Parties in preparing their phase-out management plans for an accelerated HCFC phase-out;

8. to direct the Executive Committee, as a matter of priority, to assist Article 5 Parties in conducting surveys to improve reliability in establishing their baseline data on HCFCs;

9. to encourage Parties to promote the selection of alternatives to HCFCs that minimize environmental impacts, in particular impacts on climate, as well as meeting other health, safety and economic considerations;

10. to request Parties to report regularly on their implementation of paragraph 7 of Article 2F of the Protocol;

11. to agree that the Executive Committee, when developing and applying funding criteria for projects and programmes, and taking into account paragraph 6, give priority to cost-effective projects and programmes which focus on, inter alia:

(a) phasing-out first those HCFCs with higher ozone-depleting potential, taking into account national
circumstances;

(b) substitutes and alternatives that minimize other impacts on the environment, including on the climate,
taking into account global-warming potential, energy use and other relevant factors;

(c) small and medium size enterprises;

12. to agree to address the possibilities or need for essential use exemptions, no later than 2015 where this relates to Article 2 Parties, and no later than 2020 where this relates to Article 5 Parties;

13. to agree to review in 2015 the need for the 0.5 per cent for servicing provided for in paragraph 3, and to review in 2025 the need for the annual average of 2.5 per cent for servicing provided for in paragraph 4 (d);

14. in order to satisfy basic domestic needs, to agree to allow for up to 10% of baseline levels until 2020, and, for the period after that, to consider no later than 2015 further reductions of production for basic domestic needs;

15. in accelerating the HCFC phase out, to agree that Parties are to take every practicable step consistent with Multilateral Fund programmes, to ensure that the best available and environmentally-safe substitutes and related technologies are transferred from Article 2 Parties to Article 5 Parties under fair and most favourable conditions.
(UNEP/OzL.Pro.19/7, Decision XIX/6).

Decision XIX/8

The Nineteenth Meeting of the Parties decided:

1. to request the Technology and Economic Assessment Panel to conduct a scoping study addressing the prospects for the promotion and acceptance of alternatives to HCFCs in the refrigeration and airconditioning sectors in Article 5 Parties, with specific reference to specific climatic conditions and unique operating conditions, such as those as in mines that are not open pit mines, in some Article 5 Parties;

2. to request the Technology and Economic Assessment Panel to provide a summary of the outcome of the study referred to in the preceding paragraph in its 2008 progress report with a view to identifying areas requiring more detailed study of the alternatives available and their applicability.
(UNEP/OzL.Pro.19/7, Decision XIX/8).