Hydrochlorofluorocarbon (HCFC)-141 b | 23 Jan 2020
Why in News
India has successfully phased out Hydrochlorofluorocarbon (HCFC)-141 b.
- The Ministry of Environment, Forest and Climate Change (MoEFCC) notified that the issuance of import license for HCFC-141b is prohibited from 1st January 2020 under Ozone Depleting Substances (Regulation and Control) Amendment Rules, 2019.
- Ozone Depleting Substances (Regulation and Control) Amendment Rules, 2019 have been issued under the Environment (Protection) Act, 1986.
- This step is among the first at this scale in Article 5 (special status of developing countries) parties under the Montreal Protocol.
Key Points
- HCFC-141 b is one of the most powerful ozone-depleting chemicals after Chlorofluorocarbons (CFCs).
- It is mainly used as a blowing agent in the foam manufacturing industries.
- In India, the foam manufacturing sector is a mix of large, medium and small enterprises having varying capacities, with the preponderance of Micro, Small, and Medium Enterprises (MSMEs).
- HCFC-141 b is not produced domestically and all requirements were met through imports.
- India is one of the few countries that are pioneer in the use of non-Ozone Depleting technologies and have a low Global Warming Potential (GWP).
- The Ministry also adopted a structured approach to engage with foam manufacturing enterprises for providing technical and financial assistance in order to transition to non-ODS and low GWP technologies under the HCFC Phase-out Management Plan (HPMP).