Knowledge Nugget | No new clearances for HFC production in India after 2027. Why is it important for UPSC exam

India’s decision to ban new HFC production is in line with the Kigali amendment which is expected to avoid up to 0.5 degree Celsius of global warming by 2100 – here’s why this matters for climate action.

Key takeaways:

1. India is a party to the landmark Montreal Protocol of 1989 which was brought to tackle ozone depletion through phase-out of CFCs, with a complete ban from 2010.

2. Later in 2021, India ratified the Kigali amendment to the protocol, which adopted a plan to phase-down controlled applications of HFCs that were being used as a replacement for CFCs. This landmark amendment to the protocol was agreed upon in Kigali, Rwanda, in 2016.

3. India has agreed to a phase-down schedule from January 1, 2028, onwards, which will see 10 per cent reduction in HFCs by 2032 rising up to 85 per cent by 2047.

Source: AI-generated image

4. This will be to align it with the HFC phase-down schedule under the Kigali Amendment, prohibition on setting up of new or expansion of HFC production capacity for controlled application after the freeze date of January 1, 2028, and implementation of appropriate framework permitting HFC production.

Montreal Protocol to Kigali Amendment: Ozone pact in climate fight

1. The 1989 Montreal Protocol is meant to protect the ozone layer of the upper atmosphere. It wasn’t originally an instrument to fight climate change. A set of chemicals, mainly the chlorofluorocarbons or CFCs, which were being used in the air-conditioning and refrigeration industry earlier, were found to be damaging the ozone layer of the upper atmosphere.

2. Their extensive use had led to depletion of the ozone layer, and formation of an “ozone hole” over the Antarctic region. The Montreal Protocol mandated the complete phase-out of CFCs and other ozone-depleting substances (ODS), which it has successfully managed to do in the last three decades.

3. According to the United Nations Environment Protection, the Montreal Protocol is widely hailed as the most successful environmental agreement in history, phasing out 98% of ozone depleting substances (ODS) and putting the ozone layer on the path to recovery by the middle of this century.

4. ODS are man-made gases that destroy ozone once they reach the ozone layer. It include chlorofluorocarbons (CFCs), hydrochlorofluorocarbons (HCFCs), hydrobromoflurocarbons (HBFCs), halons, methyl bromide, carbon tetrachloride and methyl chloroform.

5. CFCs were gradually replaced, first by HCFCs, or hydrochlorofluorocarbons, in some cases, and eventually by HFCs which have minimal impact on the ozone layer. The transition from HCFCs to HFCs is still happening, particularly in the developing world.

6. HFCs do not cause much damage to the ozone layer — the reason they were not originally banned — but are very powerful greenhouse gases. Therefore, they were not controlled substances under the Montreal Protocol.

7. However, HFCs are known to be much worse than carbon dioxide in causing global warming. In fact, according to the UN Environment Programme (UNEP), the average global warming potential of 22 of the most used HFCs is about 2,500 times that of carbon dioxide.

8. The Kigali Amendment to the Montreal Protocol seeks to eliminate 80-90 per cent of the HFCs currently in use by the year 2050. This is expected to avoid up to 0.5 degree Celsius of global temperature rise by 2100, while continuing to protect the ozone layer.

9. Under the Kigali amendment, the United States, China and India are in separate groups of countries, with different time schedules to phase out their HFCs and replace them with climate-friendly alternatives.

10. India is in Group 2 with Bahrain, the Islamic Republic of Iran, Iraq, Kuwait, Oman, Pakistan, Qatar, Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates. India has to reduce its HFC use by 80 per cent by the year 2047, while China and the United States have to achieve the same target by the year 2045 and 2034 respectively.

BEYOND THE NUGGET: Methane

1. Methane is the second most common among the six major greenhouse gases, after carbon dioxide, and accounts for about 17 per cent of global greenhouse gas emissions.

2. Compared to carbon dioxide which stays in the atmosphere for 100 years or more, methane has a relatively shorter lifespan of about 12 years, but has a significantly higher global warming potential, about 80 times that of carbon dioxide. At least 30 per cent of the rise in temperature since the industrial revolution is attributed to methane emissions.

3. Methane is a colourless, odourless gas that has both natural as well as anthropogenic sources. Naturally, it is produced in a wetland due to the decomposition of vegetation under water. Other natural sources include termites, volcanoes, wildfires, etc.

4. The primary sectors responsible for anthropogenic methane emissions are: Agriculture, which accounts for 40% of emissions and includes animal manure and rice cultivation. After this, the fossil fuel sector accounts for 35% of methane emissions. Waste management is responsible for roughly 20% of emissions, originating from the decomposition of organic matter in landfills, open dumps, and wastewater treatment systems.

5. The Kyoto Protocol which was adopted in 1997 and came into force in 2005 listed six GHGs, and methane was one of them. The Kyoto Protocol imposed binding emission reduction targets on developed countries.

6. The Paris Agreement, adopted in 2015, marked a shift towards a voluntary approach (nationally determined approach), while still expecting developed countries to take the lead in setting emissions targets.

7. At COP 26, the Global Methane Pledge (GMP) was launched as a voluntary international initiative with its primary goal of reducing global methane emissions by at least 30 per cent from 2020 levels by 2030.

8. At COP29 in Baku, Azerbaijan, over 30 countries endorsed the Declaration on Reducing Methane from Organic Waste, marking a significant advancement in global climate initiatives. This declaration targets methane emissions from organic waste, such as food scraps, agricultural residues, and sewage, which account for nearly 20% of anthropogenic methane emissions.

Post Read Questions

(1) Consider the following: (UPSC CSE 2019)

1. Carbon monoxide

2. Methane

3. Ozone

4. Sulphur dioxide

Which of the above are released into the atmosphere due to the burning of crop/biomass residue?

(a) 1 and 2 only

(b) 2, 3 and 4 only

(c) 1 and 4 only

(d) 1, 2, 3 and 4

(2) Which one of the following is associated with the issue of control and phasing out of the use  of ozone-depleting substances? (UPSC CSE 2015)

(a) Bretton Woods Conference

(b) Montreal Protocol

(c) Kyoto Protocol

(d) Nagoya Protocol

(Sources: Explained: Ozone pact in climate fight, No new clearances for production of refrigerant gases after 2027: Centre, Ozone hole, filling up now: What this means for climate action epa.gov, ozone.unep.org,)

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