The Pros And Cons Of The Montreal Protocol
Much of humanity’s achievements have been accomplished in the last two centuries: the first automobiles, vaccinations against deadly diseases, and even spaceships capable of moving humans away from Earth. It seems as if between every scientific achievement, there is a shorter and shorter period of time to reach the next stage. It is estimated that ninety-nine percent of what we know about ourselves and the world around us was discovered in the last ten millennia, though humans have been around much longer than that. The technological advancements of humankind have been increasing exponentially, and the trend doesn’t seem to be slowing. Many companies now are looking to the stars, hoping to be the pioneers in creating a habitable place for humans
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The Montreal Protocol was an agreement of 46 sovereign states to reduce the production of ozone-harming byproducts and protect the Earth’s natural ozone layer (UNEP). The agreement forced manufacturers to halt the production of goods created with chlorofluorocarbon (CFC), an extremely damaging chemical vastly used at the time. Since its initial reception, the Montreal Protocol has been revised many times to account for new scientific discoveries. After the legal ban of CFC products, and the following ban of HCFC products, manufacturers turned to HFC, hydrofluorocarbons instead. Due to their lack of chlorine, HFCs pose no threat to the ozone layer, but are still considered greenhouse gases. For this reason, the 27th annual Meeting of the Parties of the Montreal Protocol began working on November 1st, 2015 on an amendment to ban the use of HFC in products (Rajecki). Before the MOP called for the official ban of HFC products in October 2016, countries were already taking action. In July of 2015, the Environmental Protection Agency banned the use of HFCs due to individual research findings. They estimated that, by 2030, the atmospheric HFC level would triple, causing a large increase in temperature across the planet (Magill). Although the Montreal Protocol is a huge step in the right direction, it may be too little, too late for planet
The Montreal Protocol was an agreement of 46 sovereign states to reduce the production of ozone-harming byproducts and protect the Earth’s natural ozone layer (UNEP). The agreement forced manufacturers to halt the production of goods created with chlorofluorocarbon (CFC), an extremely damaging chemical vastly used at the time. Since its initial reception, the Montreal Protocol has been revised many times to account for new scientific discoveries. After the legal ban of CFC products, and the following ban of HCFC products, manufacturers turned to HFC, hydrofluorocarbons instead. Due to their lack of chlorine, HFCs pose no threat to the ozone layer, but are still considered greenhouse gases. For this reason, the 27th annual Meeting of the Parties of the Montreal Protocol began working on November 1st, 2015 on an amendment to ban the use of HFC in products (Rajecki). Before the MOP called for the official ban of HFC products in October 2016, countries were already taking action. In July of 2015, the Environmental Protection Agency banned the use of HFCs due to individual research findings. They estimated that, by 2030, the atmospheric HFC level would triple, causing a large increase in temperature across the planet (Magill). Although the Montreal Protocol is a huge step in the right direction, it may be too little, too late for planet