(Originally published on 09/09/2016)

As part of the 2016 International Ozone Day Celebration, the International Workshop on Green Cold Chain Technologies was held on 9 September to strengthen information sharing among relevant stakeholders in the cold chain sector, and promote the development and application of green alternative technologies. The workshop was supported by the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP), and hosted by Foreign Economic Cooperation Office of Ministry of Environment Protection (FECO) in Beijing.

During the workshop, representatives from governments, international organizations, research institutes, private sectors and other relevant stakeholders from China and abroad shared the knowledge about development status of cold chain industry and green cold chain technologies in China, as well as the trends in related global policy and technology development.

For the past decade, UNDP China together with FECO has been assisting the Chinese government to fulfill its commitment in Montreal Protocol and realize its targets of phasing out ODS through testing out alternative technologies and demonstrating their feasibilities for wide application. Through the initiatives, over 8505 MT HCFCs was phased out in the Industrial Commercial Refrigeration (ICR) sector, significantly contributing to realization of the set stage I ICR HPMP (HCFC Phasing-out Management Plan) target.

During stage II, beginning from 2016, UNDP will continue to cooperate with FECO in assisting China to realize the tough target of phasing out more than 10,000 MT HCFCs in the next 5 years. Such a goal will be achieved through promoting the adaptation of alternative technologies in more subsectors, such as the cold chain sector by providing technology assistance and supporting other relevant activities.

“Such tasks might be challenging”, pointed out Patrick Haverman, Deputy Country Director of UNDP, “UNDP is fully committed to support the works of HCFC phasing out in the ICR sector. We hope together with FECO, we can assist China to meet its ODS phasing-out targets in 2020, 2025 and 2030.”

The workshop also explored and presented current practices of green chain technologies and future green solutions, which could promote the combination of technologies and policies, and therefore prepare for further steps in phasing-out Ozone Depletion Substance (ODS).