World Ozone Day

Entire world Ozone Day is getting celebrated on September 16 with the concept “global cooperation protecting existence on Earth”, in recognition of the 35th anniversary of the Montreal Protocol on Substances that Deplete the Ozone Layer.

On September 16, 1987, governments adopted the Montreal Protocol to manage and reduce ozone-depleting substances, largely chlorofluorocarbons (CFCs) and halons. The protocol came into outcome in 1989. By 2008, it was the first and only UN environmental arrangement to be ratified by every region in the earth.

“In the confront of a triple planetary crisis – local climate modify, character decline and pollution – the Montreal Protocol is one particular of the most effective examples we have of the ability of multilateralism,” claims Meg Seki, Executive Secretary of the United Nations Surroundings Programme’s (UNEP’s) Ozone Secretariat. She notes how this results is reflected in the theme for this year’s function.

In accordance to the UNEP Ozone Secretariat, the Montreal Protocol has shielded hundreds of thousands of people from pores and skin cancer and cataracts more than the many years. It has also slowed climate transform. If ozone-depleting chemical compounds experienced not been banned, it is approximated that global temperatures would rise by an additional 2.5°C by the conclude of this century.

The HVAC&R marketplace has played a big part in phasing out the use of CFCs, as very well as HCFCs, as refrigerants. In truth, in the final fiscal yr, Australia established a new report for destroying ozone-depleting refrigerant gases and getting rid of them forever from the ecosystem.

According to the Australian Refrigeration Council (ARC), the HVAC&R field ruined more than three occasions as substantially R22, a single of the most prevalent ozone-depleting refrigerant gases, as in any of the former five several years. Much more than 120 tonnes of R22 have been recovered in 2020–21 and despatched for destruction at the Refrigerant Reclaim Australia (RRA) plasma arc facility in Melbourne – the greatest sum because it started to be reclaimed for re-use a ten years back.

By distinction, destruction fees of R22 in the past 5 years ranged from 14 to 39 tonnes.

ARC chief government officer Glenn Evans says this a testament to the efforts of the full HVAC&R market, and to the legislation and rules that underpin the licensing scheme.

“This report coincides with the 35th anniversary of the Montreal Protocol on Substances that Deplete the Ozone Layer – a great accomplishment designed on prolonged yrs of dedicated energy,” he says.

“Australia enshrined the ideas of the Montreal Protocol in legislation with the Ozone Protection and Synthetic Greenhouse Gasoline Administration Act 1989 – 1 of the 1st countries to do so.

“The first targets to secure the ozone layer ended up the CFCs utilised in anything from aerosol cans to fridges and air conditioners, which were banned in 1996.

“After that, the RAC industry’s concentration moved on to doing away with hydrochlorofluorocarbons (HCFCs) these kinds of as R22, and below we are now, nearer than at any time to that objective.”

More info about Environment Ozone Working day is accessible at the UNEP Ozone Secretariat site.

A totally free Ozone Working day webinar is staying held on Saturday, September 17. For more details, click below.