From www.unep.org:
The Kigali Amendment to the Montreal Protocol, which came into effect on January 1, 2019, marks a significant milestone in global climate protection. This visionary amendment, driven by the imperative to reduce the use of high global warming potential hydrofluorocarbons (HFCs), widely used as refrigerants in various applications and significant contributors to climate change, is expected to make a substantial contribution to global climate objectives.
In recognition of the pressing need to mitigate the carbon footprint associated with cooling, heating, and ventilation by advancing energy-efficient technologies and legislation, the United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP) OzonAction’s Compliance Assistance Programme (CAP) in West Asia (WA) and Europe and Central Asia (ECA) organized a two-day “Joint ECA-WA Twinning Workshop for National Ozone Officers/Montreal Protocol Officers (NOOs/MPOs), National Energy Efficiency Policymakers, and Financial Mechanisms Focal Points” on 25-26 September 2023, in Amman, Jordan.
AREA, European association of refrigeration, air conditioning and heat pump (RACHP) contractors, was among the protagonists of the event, and was represented by his former President Marco Buoni, now Head of International Affairs. Marco Buoni presented two speeches, and the slides are already available:
- Energy efficiency and saving in maintenance and prompt repair of refrigerant leakages by a certified service technician
- Key Elements of Good refrigerants Managements
This workshop comes as the first in a series of similar workshops to be held in other regions and as an integral component of a two-year “twinning” project, funded by the Multilateral Fund for the Implementation of the Montreal Protocol. The primary aim of this project is to foster collaboration among NOOs/MPOs, National Energy Efficiency Policymakers, and Financial Mechanism Focal Points, with a particular focus on integrating energy-efficiency considerations into the Montreal Protocol objectives, especially in support of the Kigali Amendment.
The joint ECA-WA twinning workshop brought together a diverse group of NOOs/MPOs, Energy Efficiency Policymakers, and Financial Mechanisms Focal Points from 22 countries (34 male, 22 female), in addition to representatives from regional and international organizations and key resource persons and experts and was conducted in conjunction with a “Joint ECA-WA Network Meeting of NOOs/MPOs” from 27-28 September 2023.
With the changing landscape of the Montreal Protocol, NOOs/MPOs find themselves at a crossroads, needing to meet the Protocol’s HCFC phase-out compliance targets while simultaneously preparing for the HFC phase-down. This shift necessitates careful consideration of technology and policy choices to sustainably manage refrigerants while fostering energy-efficient technologies, especially in high ambient-temperature countries.
Through this initiative, participants had the opportunity to enhance their capacity to align their national Montreal Protocol compliance programmes with the Kigali Amendment while integrating energy efficiency considerations into their endeavours within the refrigeration and air conditioning sector. The workshop also emphasized the concept of “twinning,” encouraging close coordination between National Energy Efficiency Policymakers and Financial Mechanism Focal Points with their respective NOOs/MPOs to advance energy efficiency within the Montreal Protocol framework, including the strategies outlined in the Kigali HFC Implementation Plan (KIP).
