Plan unveiled to protect the ozone layer

Five central government bodies have jointly unveiled a 2025-30 national plan for Implementing the Montreal Protocol on Ozone Layer Substances, vowing to strengthen comprehensive management of ozone-depleting substances (ODS) and powerful heat-trapping gases known as HFCs.

The announcement was made by Pei Xiaofei, spokesman with the Ministry of Ecology and Environment, in a news conference in Beijing on Wednesday.

Issued by the ministry, together with the National Development and Reform Commission, the ministries of industry and information technology and commerce, and the General Administration of Customs, the plan defines nine categories of substances for control. While eight of them, including chlorofluorocarbon (CFC) and carbon tetrachloride (CTC) are ODS, the other one is HFCs.

ODS are widely used in foam-blowing agents and refrigerants. While HFCs are used to replace ODS to avoid damaging the ozone layer as they are powerful heat-trapping gases.

"HFCs don't deplete the ozone layer but are synthetic greenhouse gases with a global warming potential tens to thousands of times that of carbon dioxide," Pei noted.

China has managed to phase out eight categories of ODS outlined in the plan but hydrochlorofluorocarbon (HCFC), he said. Since joining the Montreal Protocol in 1991, the country has eradicated over 628,000 tons of ODS, accounting for half of the total ODS eliminated by developing nations.

The spokesman said the plan includes 11 specific tasks concerning source control, process management, end-of-pipe treatment, and import and export management.

Starting from Jan 1, 2026, for instance, HCFC will be prohibited from being consumed for producing refrigerators and freezers. Additionally, apart from exempted controlled uses and special purposes such as raw materials, HCFC will also be banned from being imported.

He also highlighted a recently revised guideline dedicated on the management of ODS import and export.

Jointly revised by the ministries of ecology and environment and commerce, and the General Administration of Customs, the guideline has further optimized the management of ODS import and export and strengthened inter-departmental cooperation, he said.