China bans production and import of ozone depleting substances

Beijing, July. 1 (PTI): China today banned the production and import of chlorofluorocarbons (CFCs) and halon, two ozone depleting substances (ODS) with immediate effect, honouring its promise to phase out the substances two-and-a-half-years ahead of schedule.

As the biggest producer and consumer of CFCs and halon among developing nations, China had disposed of about 100,000 tonnes of CFCs and about 80,000 tonnes of halon since it signed up the Montreal Protocol in 1991, deputy director of the State Environmental Protection Administration (SEPA), Zhang Lijun said.

At the end of June, eight industries related to the use and production of CFCs and halon had banned the two substances.

The last six Chinese factories to produce CFCs agreed to stop production in a deal with the SEPA in Changshu, east Jiangsu Province on yesterday, Xinhua news agency reported.

A total production capacity of 122,000 tonnes will be phased out according to the deal signed by the SEPA, China National Chemical Construction Company and the six factories, including two in Jiangsu Province and four in neighbouring Zhejiang Province.

Interestingly, the deal has been signed soon after the Dutch government's environment agency declared that China has overtaken the United States to be the world's No one top emitter of carbon dioxide. But China has rejected the report.

CFCs are used in refrigeration and air conditioning systems, and halon is used in fire extinguishers. The two have been identified as the main substances damaging the earth's ozone layer.

Ozone shields the planet from the harmful ultraviolet-B radiation of the sun. It also completely screens out lethal UV-C radiation.

Under the Montreal Protocol on Substances that Deplete the Ozone Layer, which was signed by 24 nations in 1987, developed countries agreed to phase out the chemicals by January 1, 2005, while developing countries have a January 1, 2015, deadline.

China signed the protocol in 1991 and pledged to phase out major ODS production and consumption by 2010.