Guyana will soon benefit from assistance from the United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP) to develop and implement a Hydrochlorofluorocarbon (HCFCs) Phase-Out Management Plan.
According to a Government Information agency (GINA) press release the programme entails freezing HCFC by 2013, with the ultimate goal of phasing it out by 2030. A special workshop was convened to address the issue which is related to government’s model to mitigate the harmful effects of climate change and in creating a low carbon economy. Acting Chief Hydrometeorological Officer Bhaleka Seulall lauded the workshop as another milestone for Guyana even as Environment Week is being observed.
In 1987, leaders from many countries signed a landmark environmental treaty, the Montreal Protocol on Substances that Deplete the Ozone Layer. According to GINA, Guyana has been a party to the Montreal Protocol and the Vienna Convention for the Protection of the Ozone Layer since April 12, 1993.
It is classified as an Article Five country under the Protocol since the annual per capita consumption and production of ozone depleting substances is less than 0.3kg.
In 1998, the Hydrometeor-ological Service became the designated focal point for the Vienna Convention and the Montreal Protocol. The National Ozone Action Unit was then created within the Hydromet service and is mandated to ensure that Guyana complies with its obligations under the Protocol.
GINA said the agriculture ministry has also taken the lead role in initiating measures for the implementation of a national HCFC phase out plan.
This includes educating and preparing industries and technicians to make adjustments to adapt to the phase out schedule, facilitating the re-establishing of the Guyana Air Conditioning and Refrigeration and Ventilation Association (GARVA), restricting the importation of via the Trade Act in August 2007.
It is also publishing and distributing booklets, brochures and pamphlets to enhance awareness of the issue in the public.
The release said too UNEP Programme Officer Artie Dubrie is providing technical advice for the programme and Minister Robert Persaud reiterated that government is putting in place the necessary regulations to restrict the importation of substances containing HCFCs. He noted too that Guyana is compliant with its obligations in the Montreal Protocol. The minister also said he was confident that Guyana can meet the compliance limit of zero consumption in 2010. He said as the country approaches the phase out date of chlorofluorocarbons (CFCs) by December 31, another emerging challenge is to phase out the HCFCs.
The release said HCFCs are very potent greenhouse gases, thousands of times more powerful than the warming effects of carbon dioxide. Over the next several decades CFC and HCFC emissions from refrigerators and air conditioners will influence significantly climate changes and damage to the ozone layer.
