EIA calls for better monitoring of ODS emissions
The Environmental Investigation Agency has called for greater monitoring capacity and enforcement of the Montreal Protocol after a new report confirmed large scale emissions of ozone depleting CFC11.
A report published yesterday by an international team of atmospheric scientists pinpointed eastern China, in particular the provinces of Shandong and Hebei, as being the source of up to 60% of the rise in emissions of CFC11 first reported last year.
However, the new study revealed that there are large swathes of the world for which there is very little information on emissions of ODS.
“The fact that scientists cannot pinpoint the source of the remaining emissions demonstrates the lack of sufficient monitoring capacity in other parts of the world,” commented EIA-US climate campaign lead Avipsa Mahapatra. “This cannot be treated as isolated cases in China and underlines the need to fundamentally revisit the Montreal Protocol’s monitoring and enforcement regime, including expanding approaches to tracking the supply chain of controlled substances.”
The EIA says the report confirms the findings of its own investigations carried out last year. Its own report – Blowing it – suggested the illegal production and use of the long-banned ozone-depleting chemical was common practice in China.
Clare Perry, EIA UK’s Climate Campaign Leader added: “There are still multiple unresolved issues, including how much illegal CFC11 remains in hidden stockpiles or may have been already exported in foam products or polyol blends. However the most critical action for China now is to locate and permanently shut down all CFC11 production. This will require a significant and sustained intelligence-led enforcement effort from China.”