The Union Cabinet agreed to ratify the Kigali Amendment to the Montreal Protocol – a significant development in the arena of global climate action.
Context
The Union Cabinet agreed to ratify the Kigali Amendment to the Montreal Protocol – a significant development in the arena of global climate action.
What is Kigali amendment?
- The Kigali agreement is an amendment to the Montreal Protocol.
Montreal Protocol
- The Montreal Protocol on Substances that Deplete the Ozone Layer (the Montreal Protocol) is an international agreement made in 1987.
- It was designed to stop the production and import of ozone depleting substances and reduce their concentration in the atmosphere to help protect the earth's ozone layer.
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- The Kigali Amendment entered into force in 2019. It requires ratifying countries to reduce their use of hydrofluorocarbons by 80% by 2050.
- India will be expected to reduce its HFCs use starting from 2028, by 85% of the figure for 2024-2046 by the year 2047.
- This phase down is expected to arrest the global average temperature rise up to 0.5o C by 2100.
Important point of Agreement
- It is a legally binding agreement between the signatory parties with non-compliance measures.
- It will come into effect from 1st January 2019 provided it is ratified by at least 20 member parties by then.
- It has shown a considerable flexibility in approach while setting phase-down targets for different economies accommodating their developmental aspirations, different socio-economic compulsions, and scientific & technological capabilities.
- It also has a provision for a multilateral fund for developing countries for adaptation and mitigation.
- The Technology and Energy Assessment Panel (TEAP) will take a periodic review of the alternative technologies and products for their energy efficiency and safety standards.
- It has divided the signatory parties into three groups-
- The first group consists of rich and developed economies like USA, UK and EU countries who will start to phase down HFCs by 2019 and reduce it to 15% of 2012 levels by 2036.
- The second group consists of emerging economies like China, Brazil as well as some African countries who will phase down by 2024 and reduce it to 20% of 2021 levels by 2045.
- The third group consists of developing economies and some of the hottest climate countries like India, Pakistan, Iran, Saudi Arabia who will start phasing down HFCs by 2028 and reduce it to 15% of 2024-2026 levels till 2047.
