CFC gas on the way out

Chlorofluorocarbons (CFC) the gas which is used to power air conditioning units and refrigerators is to be phased out within the next three years.

The National Ozone Unit said this was because CFCs were damaging to the ozone layer and St Vincent and the Grenadines had an obligation as a member of the Montreal Protocol to discontinue use of the gas. The Montreal Protocol is an internationally binding agreement that focuses on the elimination of certain chemical substances that damage the ozone layer.{{more}}

Artie Dubrie of the United Nations Environment Programme told a two-day workshop for local technicians that UNEP was delighted that St Vincent and the Grenadines had lived up to its obligations under the treaty. With the assistance of UNEP, St Vincent and the Grenadines was designing a phase out programme which would see sensitization of technicians and training in new replacement chemicals.

Janeel Miller, an officer of the National Ozone Unit, said that after having a successful completion of Phase 1 of the Refrigerant Management Plan government decided to move to the Terminal Phase-out Plan.

The switch over should occur by December 2009.