Energy and Environment

Ozone Depletion and Climate Change

The scientific evidence linking Ozone Depleting Substances (ODS) to global ozone depletion led to the Montreal Protocol, a Multilateral Environmental Agreement (MEA), that since 1987 has sought to reverse past damage done to the Ozone Layer by supporting efforts to eliminate the consumption and production of ODS.

The widespread scientific consensus that climate change is a reality led to the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC) and its Kyoto Protocol to help countries take measures to reduce global warming and to adapt to changing climate change conditions.

Besides the fact that ODS deplete the Ozone Layer, certain ODS (mainly CFCs and Halon 1301), some of their alternatives that have zero-Ozone Depleting Potential (HFCs and PFCs) and transitional substitutes that have a low-Ozone Depleting Potential (such as HCFCs) are powerful greenhouse gases. For example, the Global Warming Potential (GWP) for CFCs range from 4,680 to 10,700 and the GWP for Halon 1301 is 7,030.(1)

UNDP, with financial support of the MLF, supports pilot projects which demonstrate that simultaneous achievement of the objectives of the Montreal Protocol and the UNFCCC can be technically and economically feasible, by identifying the most cost effective and environmentally friendly options in phasing-out ODS while attaining significant energy efficiency benefits and reducing greenhouse gas emissions.

A UNDP programme in Brazil, Colombia, Cuba and the regional Caribbean (Barbados, Dominican Republic, Jamaica and Trinidad and Tobago), in partnership with the Government of Canada, aims to phase-out CFC-based chiller technologies by transitioning to CFC-free alternatives. In addition to achieving the objectives of the Montreal Protocol, the use of substitute refrigerants and technologies will also provide significant energy efficiency benefits which will reduce the dependency of these countries on imported energy and contribute to increased economic efficiency. Replacing CFC based chillers also contributes to reduced greenhouse gas emissions, both from an energy consumption perpective and from reduced emissions of CFCs.