Page 31 - Frontier Technologies to Protect the Environment and Tackle Climate Change

Frontier Technologies to Protect the Environment and Tackle Climate Change

Box 2: Synopsis of The Kigali Amendment 91

Synopsis of the Kigali Amendment

The Kigali Amendment to the Montreal Protocol on Substances that Deplete the Ozone
Layer entered into force on 1 January 2019, following ratification by 65 countries. UN
Environment announced its entry into force and noted that it will help reduce the production
and consumption of hydrofluorocarbons (HFCs), potent greenhouse gases (GHGs), and thus
avoid global warming by up to 0.4°C this century.
The need for the Amendment emerged from the 1987 Montreal Protocol process, which
controls ozone-depleting substances. With HFCs’ use as an alternative to ozone-depleting
substances in cooling equipment, their role in warming the atmosphere became a greater
concern. In 2016, the Parties to the Montreal Protocol adopted the agreement on HFCs at
the close of the 28th Meeting of the Parties (MOP 28) in Kigali, Rwanda.
Under the Amendment, all countries will gradually phase down HFCs by more than 80
per cent over the next 30 years and replace them with more environmentally friendly
alternatives. A specified group of developed countries will begin the phase-down in 2019.
Several developing countries will freeze HFC consumption levels in 2024, followed by
additional countries in 2028. The Amendment also includes agreements on technologies
to destroy HFCs, data-reporting requirements, and provisions for capacity building for
developing countries.

25