The Montreal Protocol on Substances that Deplete the Ozone Layer

The Montreal Protocol on Substances that Deplete the Ozone Layer is a global agreement to protect the Earth’s ozone layer by phasing out the chemicals that deplete it. This phase-out plan includes both the production and consumption of ozone-depleting substances. The landmark agreement was signed in 1987 and entered into force in 1989.

The parties to the Protocol meet once a year to make decisions aimed at ensuring the successful implementation of the agreement. These include adjusting or amending the Protocol, which has been done six times since its creation. The most recent amendment, the Kigali Amendment, called for the phase-down of hydrofluorocarbons (HFCs) in 2016. These HFCs were used as replacements for a batch of ozone-depleting substances eliminated by the original Montreal Protocol. Although they do not deplete the ozone layer, they are known to be powerful greenhouse gases and, thus, contributors to climate change.

The Montreal Protocol provided a set of practical, actionable tasks that were universally agreed on. The Protocol has successfully met its objectives thus far and continues to safeguard the ozone layer today. Thanks to the collaborative effort of nations around the world, the ozone layer is well on its way to recovery.

Decision XXV/8: Terms of reference for the study on the 2015-2017 replenishment of the Multilateral Fund for the Implementation of the Montreal Protocol

Recalling the parties’ decisions on previous terms of reference for studies on the replenishment of the Multilateral Fund for the Implementation of the Montreal Protocol,

Recalling also the parties’ decisions on previous replenishments of the Multilateral Fund,

  1. To request the Technology and Economic Assessment Panel to prepare a report for submission to the Twenty-Sixth Meeting of the Parties, and to submit it through the Open-ended Working Group at its thirty-fourth meeting, to enable the Twenty-Sixth Meeting of the Parties to take a decision on the appropriate level of the 2015–2017 replenishment of the Multilateral Fund;
  2. That, in preparing the report referred to in paragraph 1 of the present decision, the Panel should take into account, among other things:
    1. All control measures and relevant decisions agreed upon by the parties to the Montreal Protocol and the Executive Committee, in particular those pertaining to the special needs of low‑volume- and very-low-volume-consuming countries, in addition to small and medium-sized enterprises, and the decisions of the Twenty‑Fifth Meeting of the Parties and the Executive Committee at its seventieth and seventy-first meetings insofar as those decisions will necessitate expenditure by the Multilateral Fund during the period 2015–2017;
    2. The need to allocate resources to enable all parties operating under paragraph 1 of Article 5 to maintain compliance with Articles 2A–2E, 2G and 2I of the Protocol;
    3. The need to allocate resources to enable all parties operating under paragraph 1 of Article 5 to maintain or meet 2013, 2015 and 2020 compliance obligations in respect of Articles 2F and 2H of the Protocol, taking into account the extended commitment provided by parties operating under paragraph 1 of Article 5 under approved hydrochlorofluorocarbon phase-out management plans;
    4. Dividing the funding relating to the 2020 target applicable to hydrochlorofluorocarbon consumption and production in an appropriate manner, including, but not limited to, one scenario that divides the funding relating to the 2020 target applicable to hydrochlorofluorocarbon consumption equally between the 2015–2017 and 2018–2020 replenishments;
    5. Rules and guidelines agreed upon by the Executive Committee at all its meetings, up to and including its seventy-first meeting, for determining eligibility for the funding of investment projects and non‑investment projects, including, but not limited to, institutional strengthening;
    6. The need to allocate sufficient resources to the activities in the servicing sector in stage II of hydrochlorofluorocarbon phase-out management plans through technical assistance such as recovery, training and other necessary activities;
  3. That, as a separate element to the funding requirement estimated in paragraph 2 of the present decision, the Panel should provide indicative figures for additional resources that would be needed to enable parties operating under paragraph 1 of Article 5 to gradually avoid high-global-warming-potential alternatives to ozone-depleting substances, taking into account the availability of safe, environmentally friendly, technically proven and economically viable technologies;
  4. That, in preparing the said report, the Panel should consult widely all relevant persons and institutions and other relevant sources of information deemed useful;
  5. That the Panel should strive to complete the report referred to above in good time to enable it to be distributed to all parties two months before the thirty-fourth meeting of the Open‑ended Working Group;
  6. That the Panel should provide indicative figures for the periods 2018–2020 and 2021‑2023 to support a stable and sufficient level of funding, on the understanding that those figures will be updated in subsequent replenishment studies;