Country Obligations under the Montreal Protocol
Each Party to the Montreal Protocol and its amendments must comply with the Protocol and the amendments that they have ratified. The two main obligations of the Parties are:
- Complying with the ODS freeze and phase-out; and
- Banning ODS trade with non-Parties to the Protocol.
Freeze and phase-out obligations are different between developed and developing countries, taking into account that developing countries usually do not have easy access to alternative technologies, know-how, and capital investment. A check in the following table signifies that the ODS has been phased out already (allowing for possible approved exemptions); otherwise, the future phase-out date is provided:
| ODS | Article 2 (Developed) Countries | Article 5 (Developing) Countries |
|---|---|---|
HBFCs |
|
|
Bromochloromethane |
|
|
All CFCs |
|
2010 |
Halons |
|
2010 |
Carbon tetrachloride |
|
2010 |
Methyl chloroform |
|
2015 |
Methyl bromide |
|
2015 |
HCFCs |
2030 |
2040 |
Signifies phase-out - countries cannot produce or import the ODS.
For Article 5 countries, HCFC production and consumption must be frozen at the average of 2009 and 2010 levels by 2013, and reduced as follows:
- 10% by 2015
- 35% by 2020
- 67.5% by 2025
- 97.5% by 2030
- with 2.5% permitted for maintenance purposes only until 2040.
The Protocol of Montreal establishes specific phase-out schedules for each group of countries (developped and developing), which are implemented by domestic regulations in order to comply with them. Consequently, Customs Inspectors should be knowledgeable about country-specific regulations on the control of ODS, in particular the control of imports into their country; more information at a country-specific level is provided at the end of this course module.
