EPA approves alternatives for super-greenhouse HFC refrigerants

Washington, D.C., 16 December 2011 – The U.S. EPA took a major step this week towards reducing the fastest growing greenhouses gas in the United States by approving three low global warming potential (GWP) hydrocarbon alternatives to hydrofluorocarbon (HFC) refrigerants. HFCs are known as super- greenhouse gases because many of these man-made refrigerants have a global warming potential hundreds to thousands of times greater than CO2.

According to the United Nations Environment Programme, HFC emissions are growing so fast they threaten to push the climate system past the 2°C outer guardrail for a safe climate in a matter of decades. “The world has an ever narrowing window of time to stay within the 2 degrees scenario,” stated UNEP Executive Director Achim Steiner. Without fast action to limit the growth of HFCs, HFCs could equal nearly 20% of CO2 emissions by 2050, or about the same as current annual emissions from transport, and up to 45% of CO2 emissions if CO2 emissions are limited to 450 ppm.

The EPA’s decision to list three new alternatives to HFCs in household and small commercial refrigerators and freezers “represents a major step in towards the increased use of climate-friendly refrigerants in the US and will help spur their application globally,” said Durwood Zaelke, President of the Institute for Governance and Sustainable Development.

The decision was made under the EPA’s Significant New Alternatives Policy (SNAP) program and estimates that replacing older refrigerants will reduce greenhouse gas emissions by 600,000 tons by 2020.

A proposal to phase down all HFC uses under the Montreal Protocol was put forward by small island nations and separately by the U.S., Canada and Mexico, and could provide the equivalent of 100 billion tones of CO2 by 2050.

While supported by a vocal majority of 108 Parties, India and China delayed action to await the outcome of the Durban climate negotiations that concluded last Sunday, arguing that HFCs can only be addressed under the climate treaty, known as the Kyoto Protocol.

“With the Durban outcome delaying a global treaty until 2015 to go into effect in 2020, it is clear that that other venues must be used when they can do part of the job,” argues Zaelke. “That’s the beauty of the Montreal Protocol. Very few opportunities exist to target such significant mitigation, so cheaply, and with 100 percent assurance it will get done. We know it will work to reduce HFCs because it’s already worked to phase out nearly 100 similar chemicals.”

“Possibly the only way of slowing down climate change in the medium term”

Durban, South Africa, 9 December 2011 – The rate of global warming can be cut almost in half over the next 30 to 60 years with a package of 16 fast-action mitigation measures that reduce two local air pollutants, black carbon soot and ground-level ozone, according to Joseph Alcamo, UNEP’s chief scientist, who set out a fast-action mitigation plan yesterday during the climate negotiations.

Fast action to cut these two local air pollutants will deliver benefits for health and crops, as well as climate, and largely in regions making the cuts, added Achim Steiner, UNEP’s Executive Director, who moderated the presentation, which included ministers from Sweden, Mexico, Ghana, and Canada.

“UNEP’s fast-action agenda is even more important today, and for the next few decades, as prospects recede further into the future for a binding climate agreement,” stated Durwood Zaelke, President of the Institute for Governance & Sustainable Development, who is advising various participants at the Durban climate negotiations, which are expected to conclude tonight with limited results.

Achim Steiner agreed, “I can’t see anything in these negotiations that will prevent warming beyond two degrees. We have to find a way to break the impasse.”

“UNEP has shown us the tools to fight near-term climate impacts to protect the world’s most vulnerable people from the worst climate impacts,” added Zaelke. The Swedish environment minister, Lena Ek, who also participated in the UNEP briefing, agreed, noting that UNEP’s fast-action agenda “is possibly the only way of slowing down climate change in the medium term.”

Up to fifty percent of UNEP’s control measures can be implemented at a net cost savings, including measures such as replacing traditional biomass burning stoves with modern efficient stoves and capturing landfill methane. The measures can prevent two million premature deaths a year, mainly women and children. More than 80% of the health benefits will be in Asia.

Dr. Alcamo explained that cutting these local air pollutants can cut the rate of warming in the Arctic by two-thirds, reducing the risk of passing predicted tipping points for irreversible and possibly catastrophic climate impacts

Two UNEP reports support their fast-action mitigation agenda:

An integrated science assessment is here. A policy analysis for action is here.

India, China Delay Proposal to Phase Down HFCs, Ignore UN Warning That These Super Greenhouse Gases Threaten 2°C Guardrail for Safe Climate

Replenishment is $450 Million for three years

Bali, Indonesia, November 25, 2011 – At the 23rd annual meeting of the Montreal Protocol ozone treaty in Bali, Indonesia 21-25 November, a strong and vocal majority of 108 Parties supported a plea by island nations to phase down super greenhouse gases known as hydrofluorocarbons, or HFCs, used in refrigeration, air conditioning, and insulating foams. The island strategy, lead by the Federated States of Micronesia, is designed to slow the rate of climate change and the accompanying sea level rise that threaten survival of islands, as well as other climate impacts already affecting vulnerable peoples and places.

But a small group of Parties lead by India and China used a procedural maneuver to block the start of formal negotiations, delaying action for another year and allowing HFCs to continue their sky-rocking growth.

At the opening of the Bali meeting, attended by 127 Parties, the UN Environment Programme called for fast action to protect the climate from the explosive growth of HFCs and released a report on the climate damage from HFCs and the best ways for industry to avoid them, including a detailed list of available substitutes. Nobel Laureate Mario Molina of Mexico and Dr. A.R. Ravishankara of the United States led the team preparing the UNEP HFC report.

HFC emissions are growing so fast they threaten to push the climate system past the 2°C outer guardrail for a safe climate in a matter of decades, according to UNEP. Without fast action to limit the growth of HFCs, the Molina/Ravishankara team calculated that HFCs could equal nearly 20% of CO2 emissions by 2050, or about the same as current annual emissions from transport, and up to 45% of C02 emissions if CO2 emissions are limited to 450 ppm.

(A 450 ppm concentration of CO2 is expected to cause a 2°C increase in temperature above pre- Industrial levels—the outer guardrail many scientists consider safe. Many other scientists consider 350ppm the maximum safe level for CO2.)

―The Montreal Protocol is pushing companies into HFCs even though these chemicals are no longer technically needed in most applications‖, said Durwood Zaelke, President of the Institute for Governance & Sustainable Development, who attended the Bali meeting. ―The majority of the Parties want to correct this mistake with these super greenhouse gases, but without leadership from China and India they can’t succeed, and low-lying islands and other vulnerable peoples and places will continue to suffer increasing climate impacts.‖

―China and India need to show they can be leaders rather than laggards blocking island efforts to survive,‖ Zaelke said. ―China and India owe it to the world to support this unique opportunity to protect the climate.‖

―HFCs present the biggest, fastest piece of climate mitigation available to the world in the next few years,‖ said Zaelke. ―The island proposal would ensure climate mitigation equivalent to100 billion tonnes of CO2 by 2050, many times more than the Kyoto Protocol climate treaty.‖

But in Bali government officials from India and China supported their chemical industry, rather than the survival of the islands and the protection of other vulnerable peoples and places, including in their own countries. Heavy attendance by industry representatives from India and China appeared to have a noticeable influence on the positions of those Parties. In an intervention on the floor of the plenary, China industry representatives repeated arguments they made in 2007 opposing the previous HCFC accelerated phase-out, even claiming the current HFC proposal would cost the exact same number of jobs as they incorrectly forecast would be lost from the HCFC accelerated phase-out in 2007.

Officials from India and China argued that HFCs can only be addressed under the climate treaty, known as the Kyoto Protocol, although they also have blocked action under the climate treaty.

Parties to the climate treaty meet next week in Durban, South Africa, but prospects for meaningful action are limited. One possible outcome is a new mandate to negotiate a legally binding treaty starting in 2015, to take effect in 2020.

Along with Mexico and Canada, the U.S. also submitted a proposal to phase down HFCs. The North American Parties have provided strong technical support for the HFC proposals, backed up with strong diplomatic efforts. The U.S. and Canada are donors to the Montreal Protocol fund that pays India and China and other developing countries for switching to safer alternatives. The Parties agreed to a three- year replenishment of $ 450 million for the period 2012-14.

Zaelke noted that while some developing countries may have been disappointed with the replenishment amount, ―in a tight budget time like today this is an incredible achievement and shows how strongly all Parties support their treaty.‖

―Climate change is advancing faster than the policies to address it. We’re losing ground every day and we need the Montreal Protocol to get back in the game,‖ said Zaelke. ―Very few opportunities exist to target such significant mitigation, so cheaply, and with 100 percent assurance it will get done. That’s the beauty of the Montreal Protocol. We know it will work to cut HFCs because it’s already worked to phase out nearly 100 similar chemicals.‖

The UNEP HFC report is here.

Almost half can be cut at a profit or low cost

Bali, Indonesia, November 25, 2011 – A new UNEP report details how fast action to reduce non-CO2 short-lived climate forcers (SLCFs), including black carbon, methane and tropospheric ozone, can cut the rate of global warming in half and the Arctic by two-thirds over the next 30-60 years. The UNEP report, which is a policy follow up to a preceding UNEP/WMO report in June, provides policy pathways to implement SLCF control measures building upon existing institutions, policies and regulatory frameworks.

Cutting SLCFs represents a “win-win” for climate mitigation, public health and food security, with benefits that justify action regardless of climate change policy. Targeted national efforts on 16 abatement measures, supported by regional and global frameworks, can prevent more than two million premature deaths a year, mainly women and children, with more than 80% of the health benefits occurring in Asia. Cutting SLCFs can avoid approximately 32 million tones of crop losses each year. Up to fifty percent of the identified control measures can be implemented at a net cost savings, including measures such as replacing traditional biomass burning stoves with modern efficient stoves and capturing landfill methane.

Cutting SLCFs is critical for protecting the Arctic, which has warmed twice as fast as the rest of the world over the past fifty years. Arctic melting is predicted to contribute to sea level rise of as much as 5 feet by the end of the century. Reducing SLCFs could cut the rate of warming in the Arctic by two- thirds, reducing projected warming by 0.7°C and reducing the risk of passing predicted thresholds for accelerating positive climate feedbacks.

“UNEP has shown us the tools to fight back against near-term climate change,” said Durwood Zaelke, IGSD President, “and we now need to use the tools for fast mitigation to protect the world’s most vulnerable people and places from the worst impacts of climate change.”

The report identifies 16 national abatement measures that if fully implemented can cut emissions of black carbon by 77 percent and methane by 38 percent by 2030. These include: coal mine ventilation, controlling manure emissions, applying diesel particulate filters to vehicles, replacing traditional cookstoves, kilns, coke ovens and heaters with clean modern equivalents and fuels, and banning open field burning.

Sources and impacts of SLCFs vary greatly by region so national actions should be supported by regional efforts through existing air pollution agreements to build awareness and promote implementation. Global actions can also support national and regional action and can build on existing institutional arrangements to provide coordination, provide technical assistance and ensure adequate financial support for abatement measures.

The UNEP report is be available here.

Basel Convention Regional Center for Central America and Mexico (BCRC – CAM), Cartagena de Indias, Colombia (21 October 2011) – Destroying large banks of ozone-depleting substances (ODS), harmful to the earth’s atmosphere, together with persistent organic pollutants (POPs), damaging to human health and the environment, are the twin aims of a unique regional partnership launched today in Cartagena de Indias, Colombia. This initiative is supported financially by Norway and Switzerland.

Central American leaders coordinating destruction of ozone-depleting substances and persistent organic pollutants announced two national pilot projects to help meet the challenge of collecting and destroying mounting stocks of chemicals and wastes in the region, on the closing day of the 10th meeting of the Conference of the Parties to the Basel Convention.

The Central American initiative will start with the above mentioned two national pilot destruction projects and then expand into other four Central American countries, collecting and destroying ODS and POPs and reducing ODS emissions, which could damage the ozone layer and increase climate change, while at the same time cleaning up POPs. Thus, six Central American countries will be cleaned of these substances: Costa Rica, El Salvador, Guatemala, Honduras, Nicaragua and Panama, based on the feasibility assessment which is currently under preparation. It will evaluate conditions for possible coordination with other POPs disposal procedures.

Cost analysis studies will be carried out to ensure that the collection, transportation and destruction can take place in an economical, as well as in an environmentally sound manner, according to procedures approved under the Montreal Protocol on Protection of the Ozone Layer, the Basel Convention on Control of Transboundary Movements of Hazardous Wastes and their Disposal, and the Stockholm Convention on Persistent Organic Pollutants. This initiative will provide free-of-charge technical and financial support for the environmentally sound destruction of ODS and POPs to motivate holders of these substances to stop releasing them to the environment.

“To overcome the difficulties faced by Parties in the identification of ODS banks for destruction and then ensure the ultimate destruction of these harmful substances, countries need new approaches. This groundbreaking project may set a precedent for future initiatives,” said Marco Gonzalez, Executive Secretary of the Vienna Convention and Montreal Protocol on Substances that Deplete the Ozone Layer.

“Having a joint approach to ODS and POPs destruction provides a highly cost-effective model which can be shared and replicated in other regions,” said Jim Willis, Executive Secretary of the Basel, Rotterdam and Stockholm Conventions. “By promoting synergies between three international treaties and regional and national partners, the project will deliver concrete benefits to the economic and environmental health of the region and the globe,” he concluded.

Miguel Araujo, Director of the Basel Convention Regional Centre for Central America and Mexico (BCRC-CAM) and leader of the initiative, said “The Basel Convention and national regulations intended to discourage undesirable shipments of chemical substances and wastes also may be perceived as inhibiting the desirable shipment of ODS and POPs to responsible destruction facilities in a variety of countries.

“The solution is to find ways to encourage, finance, and streamline shipment of ODS and POPs to safe destruction without opening loopholes that would allow the unsafe or undesirable shipment of other toxic and hazardous substances and wastes,” Mr. Araujo said.

Experts from three multilateral environmental agreements – the 1985 Vienna Convention on the Protection of the Ozone Layer and its 1987 Montreal Protocol on Substances that Deplete the Ozone Layer, the 1989 Basel Convention on the Control of Transboundary Movements of Hazardous Wastes and their Disposal, and the 2001 Stockholm Convention on Persistent Organic Pollutants – have joined in support of the initiative.

The initiative sets an example of synergies between the multilateral environmental agreements and regional and national actors. It will encourage national coordination efforts and help reduce costs of implementation of the treaties by preventing duplication of work.

Initiative organizers underscore the urgency and relevance of this effort, given the higher cost effectiveness of a coordinated ODS and POPs destruction, current delays in preparing ODS inventories and facilities that can destroy ODS banks in the Central American region.

The initiative results can also be replicated in other regions of the world.

Note to editors

Initiative “Coordinated Destruction of ODS and POPs Banks in Central America”

The initiative is organized and managed by the Basel Convention Regional Centre for Central America and Mexico (Centro Regional del Convenio de Basilea para Centroamérica y México, BCRC-CAM) in El Salvador.

The initiative is supported by the Norwegian Ministry of the Environment and the Swiss Federal Office for the Environment, with special technical support provided by the Netherlands Ministry of Defense, United States Department of Defense, the United States Environmental Protection Agency, UNEP, Refrigerant Reclaim Australia, Hortitectnia, and the National Institute for Advanced Science and Technology of Japan.

Institute for Governance and Sustainable Development is providing legal, capacity building, and networking support to identify and resolve barriers to the desirable cross- border shipment of ODS and POPS for destruction. The goal is to fully satisfy the norms of prior informed consent, while supporting sustainable solutions to chemical management.

The initiative has two components implemented by BCRC-CAM:

1. “Pilot destruction of ODS and POPs and Legal Analysis of Feasibility of Transboundary Movements within Central American countries”, financed by Norway, which will produce calibrated protocols for the destruction of ODS and POPs banks based on pilot destructions, and a legal analysis on the feasibility of intraregional transboundary movements of ODS and It seeks the use of existing capacities for the destruction of ODS that are not currently available in many Central American countries. In turn, the new Central American initiative will provide information on existing ODS and POPs banks and alternate technologies and costs for their destruction.

1. “Feasibility Assessment and Preparation of National Destruction Plans of ODS and POPs for six Central American Countries (Costa Rica, El Salvador, Guatemala, Honduras, Nicaragua and Panama)”, financed by It includes cost estimates of collection, transportation and destruction of ODS and POPs banks,

The initiative will seek synergies with related efforts in the region (e.g. Reduction of Chemical Runoff in Agriculture and Tourism (REPCAR II), remediation activities in coordination with the BlackSmith Institute).

The three multilateral environmental conventions

The Basel Convention was drafted and adopted when a tightening of environmental regulations in industrialized countries in the 1980s stimulated irresponsible shipping of hazardous waste to developing countries and to Eastern Europe. The Convention established a framework based on “prior informed consent,” for controlling movements of hazardous wastes across international frontiers. The Convention mandates Parties to reduce the hazardous wastes generated and promote environmentally sound management (ESM); restrict transboundary movements of wastes except where these agree with ESM principles and ensure ESM of wastes as close as possible to where they were generated.

Organized under the theme “Prevention, minimization and recovery of wastes”, the Tenth Meeting of the Conference of the Basel Convention is being held at the invitation of the Government of Colombia in Cartagena de Indias, Colombia, from 17 to 21 October 2011. Eight hundred delegates and observers from over 150 countries are attending the meeting.

The Stockholm Convention is a global treaty to protect human health and the environment from chemicals that persist in the environment for long periods, become widely distributed geographically, bioaccumulate in humans or wildlife, and have adverse effects to human health or to the environment. The Convention requires Parties to take measures to eliminate or reduce the release of POPs into the environment.

The Vienna Convention and its Montreal Protocol protects the Earth against harmful ultra violet radiation by phasing out the production and consumption of nearly 100 ODS once used in over 250 industrial, military and consumer sectors. ODS were once widely used for health (medicine & sterilization), fire protection (food processing, weapons), electronics and aerospace (solvents), energy efficiency (insulating foam), food preservation (refrigeration and food freezing), comfort (air conditioning), convenience (aerosol deodorant and hairspray), and more.

Contact

Mr. Miguel Araujo, Director, Centro Regional del Convenio de Basilea para Centroamérica y México (CRCB-CAM)/Basel Convention Regional Center for Central America and Mexico (BCRC-CAM), La Libertad, El Salvador

Tel: +503 2248 8990 / Mobile: +503 7701 1681 / Fax: +503 2248 8894

Email: maraujo@sica.int, maraujo@marn.gob.sv, Web portal: www.sica.int/crcbcam

Fast cuts in black carbon are needed to reduce threats from hundreds of dangerous glacial dams in the Himalayan Hindu Kush and the devastating flash floods caused when these dams burst, according to the European Parliament. The Parliament’s Resolution of 27 September 2011 recommends fast-action to cut black carbon, as well as ground-level ozone and its precursor methane, to slow glacial melt and reduce the threat of glacial lake outburst floods.

Nirj Deva, Chair of the Committee on Development and author of the report supporting the Resolution, noted during debate that there are “8,000 glacial lakes in the Hindu Kush Himalayas alone, 203 of which they have declared to be extremely dangerous.” Deva called for an “international agency of the United Nations to be created, through the EU’s support, so that India, Pakistan, China, Nepal, Bhutan and other countries can come together under the auspices of the UN” to reduce such risks.

The Resolution “stresses that black carbon remains as prevalent a cause of glacial retreat as carbon dioxide” and “urges immediate action be taken with a view to reducing black carbon and methane emissions, … as a fast-action method of halting glacial and snow melting.” The Resolution calls for a Global Action Plan to reduce short-lived climate forcers, as well as other measures to reduce flood risks from climate change.

The Resolution relies on recent evidence from the United Nation Environment Programme and World Meteorological Organization showing that cutting these two local air pollutants could cut the rate of global warming in half during the next 30 to 60 years. The UNEP/WMO report also calculates that such cuts can save the more than two million lives lost to black carbon every year, and avoid damage to crops. These strategies would complement measures to reduce carbon dioxide emissions.

“The European Parliament is emerging as a global leader in the effort to cut black carbon and other short-lived climate forcers,” said Durwood Zaelke, President of the Institute for Governance and Sustainable Development (IGSD). “The Parliament realizes that these fast-action strategies are critical for protecting the world’s vulnerable people and places, including those living downstream from dangerous glacial dams.”

“Because China, India, and other Asian governments are committed to improving public health and promoting sustainable development, the governments and business communities should take advantage of these fast action strategies to reduce short-lived climate forcers,” said Xiaopu Sun, Law Fellow at IGSD.

The Parliament passed another Resolution on 14 September calling for fast action to reduce black carbon, ground-level ozone, and hydrofluorocarbons, as part of a comprehensive European climate strategy. The September Major Economies Forum meeting also noted the growing interest in fast action to cut emissions of short-lived climate forcers, and the first-ever Ministerial meeting on short- lived climate forcers in Mexico City on 12 September also called for global action.

Notes pending proposal to phase out HFCs under Montreal Protocol

Washington, DC, September 16, 2011 – Countries and companies should leapfrog HFCs to protect the climate, according to U.N. Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon in a statement issued today on International Ozone Day. HFCs are super greenhouse gases 2,000 times more potent than carbon dioxide at warming the climate.

Executive Secretary of the Ozone Secretariat Marco Gonzalez emphasized in his earlier statement that the climate benefits of the current accelerated HCFC phase-out under the Montreal Protocol could be undermined if HFCs are selected as replacement gases. Due to the 2007 accelerated HCFC phase-out, HFCs have become the fastest-growing greenhouse gas in the United States and in many other countries. If HFCs are not controlled they could make up more than one-third of climate forcing by mid-century.

The Secretary-General highlighted the success of the Montreal Protocol in protecting the global climate as well as the ozone layer. The 1987 Montreal Protocol has provided the equivalent of 11 billion tonnes of CO2 in climate mitigation each year for the past 20 years. Parties explicitly added additional climate protection as well as additional ozone benefits in 2007 with their accelerated phase-out of HCFCs. The Secretary-General called this phase-out a “unique opportunity” not only to eliminate ozone-depleting compounds “but do so in a way that lowers energy costs and maximizes climate benefits” by leapfrogging HFCs.

The Secretary-General noted, “Parties to the Montreal Protocol are now considering … proposals to bring hydrofluorocarbons, or HFCs, under the Protocol….” The proposed HFC amendment was first put forward by the Federated States of Micronesia in 2009 and would reduce 85-90% of HFC production and use, achieving climate mitigation equivalent to 100 billion tonnes of CO2 by 2050. The United States, Canada, and Mexico followed with a similar HFC proposal. Last year 91 countries supported reducing HFCs, and more are expected to follow in the coming months. A consortium of 400 companies also pledged to start reducing HFCs by 2015.

Adding further momentum, earlier this week the European Parliament passed a strong resolution calling for fast action to cut HFCs and other non-CO2 climate forcers, including black carbon, ground-level ozone, and methane.

“Climate change is advancing faster than the policies to address it. We’re losing ground every day and we need the Montreal Protocol to get us back in the game,” warned Durwood Zaelke, President of the Institute for Governance and Sustainable Development. “Very few opportunities exist to effectively target such a significant amount of mitigation, so cheaply, and with 100 percent assurance that it will get done. That’s the beauty of the Montreal Protocol. We know it will work because it has already worked for 96 other chemicals.”

Washington, DC, September 14, 2011 – The European Parliament is calling for fast action to reduce non-CO2 climate forcers including black carbon soot, hydrofluorocarbons (HFCs), methane, and ground-level ozone, which together are responsible for nearly half of climate forcing. The Parliament’s call for action came in a Resolution passed today by an overwhelming majority (578 to 51 with 22 abstentions).

The Resolution calls for a comprehensive climate policy and ―stresses that in addition to considering CO2 emission reductions, it should place emphasis on strategies that can produce the fastest climate response,‖ specifically strategies to cut black carbon soot, HFCs, methane, and ground-level ozone. Because these climate forcers are short-lived, reducing them produces a fast climate response. This is in contrast to long-lived CO2, where a significant portion remains in the atmosphere for thousands of years. Even cutting CO2 emissions to zero today will not produce cooling for a thousand years.

“Cutting just two of the short-lived climate forcers — black carbon soot and ground-level ozone — can cut the rate of global warming in half and by two-thirds in the Arctic for the next 30 to 60 years, assuming we also make progress on CO2,” said Durwood Zaelke, President of the Institute for Governance and Sustainable Development. Zaelke testified before the Parliament in March 2011(see written testimony here, and video here). He added, “Cutting the short-lived forcers is not a substitute for cutting CO2, which controls long-term climate temperature. But if we don’t cut the non-CO2 forcers now and slow the rate of warming in the next few decades, we risk passing tipping points for abrupt and catastrophic climate impact.”

The risk of passing tipping points includes the loss of Arctic sea ice, which currently acts as a defensive shield reflecting heat back into space, the disintegration of the Greenland ice sheet and the world’s other glaciers, as well as the die off of the Amazon and other forests. Current climate impacts are already causing significant harm, contributing to extreme weather events. This year has already seen record floods and droughts around the world including in the Horn of Africa where millions are facing starvation.

Emissions of black carbon and other short-lived climate forcers can be reduced quickly using existing technologies and existing laws, according to a recent assessment by the U.N. Environment Programme and World Meteorological Organization.

The EU Resolution follows the first-ever ministerial meeting on short-lived climate forcers held 12 September in Mexico City, hosted by Mexico and Sweden, along with the United States and the United Nations Environment Programme. A follow-up technical meeting will be hosted by Bangladesh in October, with further ministerial meetings likely in the future.

MONTREAL, 8 August 2011 – Proposed amendments to phase down hydrofluorocarbons (HFCs) under the Montreal Protocol received support from a diverse group of developing and developed countries this week at the treaty‟s annual Open Ended Working Group meeting.

The amendment, which was first put forward by the Federated States of Micronesia in 2009, is designed to protect countries most vulnerable to climate impacts, including low-lying islands and coastal countries already suffering from accelerating sea level rise, and agriculture-dependent countries of Asia and Africa already suffering drought and shifting rainfall. The United States, Canada, and Mexico followed with a similar HFC proposal. This year discussions of HFCs and climate change dominated the plenary sessions.

The proposals would reduce 85-90% of HFC production and use, achieving climate mitigation equivalent to 100 billion tones of CO2 by 2050. HFCs are the fastest growing greenhouse gas (GHG) in the United States and in many other countries. If they are not controlled they could make up more than one-third of climate forcing by mid-century. The growth in HFCs is a direct result of the previous phase-out of chlorofluorocarbons (CFCs) and the ongoing phase-out of hydrochlorofluorocarbons (HCFCs) under the Montreal Protocol.

“An HFC amendment is the most politically feasible strategy the world has to achieve fast climate mitigation,” said Durwood Zaelke, President of the Institute for Governance & Sustainable Development, who attended the meeting. “Indeed, agreeing to the Montreal Protocol amendment could provide the missing momentum for a broader climate deal under the UN Framework Convention on Climate Change.” The Montreal Protocol has all UN members as parties, and all consider the treaty to be fair.

“The amendment also has the advantage of administrative simplicity,” said Zaelke. “It focuses on only one gas, HFCs, and uses a treaty that already has the expertise it needs to quickly phase down production and use of these manmade chemicals.” The expertise comes from phasing out 96 similar chemicals by 98% over the past two decades, including the chemicals HFCs are now replacing, CFCs and HCFCs. The Montreal Protocol produced climate mitigation equivalent to 11 billion tonnes per year of CO2 from 1990-2010. For comparison, total GHG emissions in 2008 were the equivalent of ~50 billion tones of CO2 per year.

Another advantage, and “a key political point for developing countries,” according to Romina Picolotti, former Minister of Environment for Argentina, “is that the Montreal Protocol fully implements the principle of „common but differentiated responsibility‟.” The treaty does this by providing funding to reduce controlled chemicals, by delaying obligations for developing countries for several years, and by supporting capacity building.

The HFC amendment also has the advantage of producing fast cooling of the climate system because most HFCs have lifetimes of only two to three decades. “Reducing HFCs and other short-lived climate forcers like methane and black carbon can keep warming from passing dangerous limits for 30 to 60 years,” said Zaelke, “provided we also reduce CO2. This is critical for the survival of the world‟s most vulnerable countries.”

India and China acknowledge that HFCs are a critical climate issue, but argue that their mitigation should be conducted exclusively under the UN‟s Kyoto Protocol climate treaty. The Kyoto Protocol addresses downstream emissions of HFCs, not their upstream production and use, as would be done under the Montreal Protocol. In addition, Kyoto only mandates reductions from developed countries, while Montreal would mandate reductions from all countries.

“As climate impacts continue to increase, and as the urgency for reducing climate pollutants grows, the island‟s climate strategy looks better and better, especially for the most vulnerable countries,” said Picolotti.

Last year 91 countries issued a declaration supporting action to reduce HFCs, and more are expected to follow in the coming months. In February 2011, environment ministers from China, India, Brazil, and South Africa noted that the issue of phasing out HFCs required in depth study.

Also in February 2011, India and the US formed a joint HFC Task Force. The Indian Ministry of Environment & Forests noted that India recognizes “the importance of addressing this problem, because of its own multiple vulnerabilities to climate change.”

Discussions on the HFC amendments will resume at the Meeting of the Parties in Bali, Indonesia 21-25 November.

“China holds the key to the amendment and the world‟s safety for the next 30 to 60 years,” said Zaelke. “The question is whether China is ready to be a global leader and help the world‟s most vulnerable countries.”

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The Institute for Governance & Sustainable Development‟s mission is to promote just and sustainable societies and to protect the environment by advancing the understanding, development and implementation of effective, accountable and democratic systems of governance for sustainable development. See www.igsd.org or contact Durwood Zaelke, President, IGSD, zaelke@igsd.org.

Washington, D.C., July 13, 2011 – Climate pollutant emissions violate human rights and require rapid reductions to protect the world’s most vulnerable people, according to a joint submission to the U.N. High Commissioner for Human Rights by the Center for Human Rights and Environment (CEDHA) in Argentina and the Institute for Governance and Sustainable Development (IGSD) in Washington, D.C., and Geneva.

Climate pollutants and associated adverse impacts from a warming world violate basic human rights to life, health, water, food, equality before the law, effective judicial remedy, residence and movement, self determination, clean environment, and to be free from interference with one’s home. States have a mandatory obligation under international human rights law to adopt special measures to protect the fundamental rights of the inhabitants of the world’s most vulnerable regions from climate impacts. The joint submission identifies specific fast actions to reduce emissions of climate pollutants. It is available here.

“The Human Rights Council is the highest organ of the U.N. Human Rights System, and has an affirmative duty to ensure the international protection of the basic rights of human beings,” stated Romina Picolotti, President of CEDHA. She added, “We are operating under circumstances of extreme emergency with climate change and the failure to act immediately will imply, not only massive human rights violations, but also will rob the U.N. Human Rights System of its purpose and raison d etre.”

Black carbon soot, ground-level (tropospheric) ozone, methane, and hydrofluorocarbons (HFCs) are collectively known as short-lived climate pollutants. They remain in the atmosphere for days to a few decades, and are responsible for up to half of global climate change and the associated adverse impacts. They can be cut quickly using existing technologies and often using current laws and institutions. Reducing them can cut the rate of global warming in half and the rate of warming in the Arctic by two-thirds. The Arctic is currently warming at twice the rate of the global average, and Arctic melting is predicted to contribute to sea level rise of as much as 5 feet by the end of the century, according to the International Arctic Monitoring and Assessment Program. This is more than two and a half times higher than the sea level rise projected in 2007 by the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change.

In addition to causing up to half of global climate change, these short-lived climate pollutants are causing serious harm to public health. Black carbon soot kills as many as 2.4 million people each year, mostly women and children. Ground-level ozone also causes other debilitating health effects, as well as significant damage to food crops. Protecting vulnerable people and places from increasing climate impacts requires fast mitigation of short-lived climate pollutants.

“Any pollutant that kills more than two million women and children every year is a crime against humanity, especially when we currently have the technology and infrastructure to immediately stop this deadly pollution and prevent these needless deaths,” states Durwood Zaelke, President of IGSD.

Emissions of black carbon and ground-level ozone can be reduced quickly by implementing 16 measures identified by U.N. Environment Programme and World Meteorological Organization. Developed from a review of over 2,000 possible measures, these 16 measures include: coal mine ventilation, controlling manure emissions, applying diesel particulate filters to vehicles, replacing traditional cookstoves, kilns, coke ovens and heaters with clean modern equivalents and fuels, and banning open field burning. On an international level, mitigation policies should be pursued through existing international agreements as recommended by UNEP.

International and national measures can also be taken to reduce production, use, and emission of HFCs. Many climate-friendly HFC alternatives are already available. The Montreal Protocol can be amended to reduce the production and use of HFCs. The Federated States of Micronesia has made such a proposal. A similar joint proposal to phase out HFCs with high global warming potential has been made by the United States, Mexico and Canada.

In addition to cutting the short lived climate pollutants, it is critical to cut emissions of carbon dioxide, which is responsible for the other 50% of global warming. Cutting carbon dioxide is essential for long-term climate protection. However, because a significant fraction of the carbon dioxide emitted today stays in the atmosphere for thousands of years, cutting carbon dioxide pollution does not produce immediate cooling of the climate system, and does not provide relief to the vulnerable peoples and ecosystems they depend upon, which are already suffering adverse impacts of global warming.