The UAE joins the world in celebrating the ‘International Day for the Preservation of the Ozone Layer’ today (Wednesday, September 16, 2015) under the theme ‘Ozone: All there is between you and UV.’ This special day aims to generate awareness on the substances that causes the depletion of the ozone layer, thus causing the health, environmental and economic damages. It also highlights related efforts from the international community as well as programs being implemented worldwide to restore the ozone layer’s ability to provide protection from the harmful health and environmental effects of ultraviolet (UV) rays.
In a press statement delivered to mark today’s occasion, the UAE Ministry of Environment and Water commended the close coordination and cooperation between the authorities and all stakeholders in the country. It lauded the successes of the previous national programs aimed at enhancing the commitment to the ‘Vienna Convention for the Protection of the Ozone Layer’ and the ‘Montreal Protocol on Substances that Deplete the Ozone Layer.’ Since joining the Convention in 1989 and the Protocol in 1990, the UAE has stepped up its efforts to discard ozone-depleting substances. It has established a national program that has been ensuring the safe disposal of existing stocks of chlorofluorocarbon (CFC) substances since 2010 and which bands the import and use of the material known for significantly depleting the ozone layer.
The UAE Ministry of Environment and Water, in cooperation with the concerned authorities and stakeholders in the country, issued a regulatory decision in 2012 to set a timeframe to dispose hydrochlorofluorocarbon (HCFC) compounds in line with the decision of the 19th Meeting of the Parties to the Montreal Protocol to meet total ban by 2040. HCFC compounds were previously permitted as interim substitutes before the call for the ban on the substances which were found to have a huge impact on the global warming.
Furthermore, the regulatory decision determined the substances for phase-out and established the implementing programs as well as imposed the conditions that companies planning to handle the said compounds register with the Ministry of Environment and Water. The decision also specified the annual quotas for each company. It also required the companies involved to submit semi-annual statistics to the Ministry on the quantities imported and trading details. Additionally, the decision banned the import or re-export of any compound stated without the necessary permit from the Ministry with effect from January 1, 2013.
The Council of Ministers also issued Decision No. 26 of 2014 forming a special National System for Substances that Deplete the Ozone Layer. It mandates the obligatory inspection of all products, equipment and devices that use such substances and bans imports on used items. The System also bans the import, export or re-export of the inspected substances from and to non-parties to the Montreal Protocol.
In order to enhance the international cooperation to protect the ozone layer and promote the UAE’s leading position in this regard, the Ministry will host the 27th Meeting of the Parties to the Montreal Protocol.’ To be held in Dubai in November 2015, it will gather 196 participating countries represented by more than 50 ministers and international personalities from the environment, labor, economy and industrial sectors. The heads of a number of international organizations along with 500 high-level officials representing the UN, private sector companies, universities, research centers, and regional entities will also be present.