Indonesia Highly Committed To Protecting Ozone Layer

Jakarta, Sep 16 (Antara) - Indonesia`s strong commitment to protecting the ozone layer is demonstrated in its initiative to invite all parties to choose an alternative to ozone-depleting products, Environment Minister Balthasar Kambuaya said here on Monday. "In an attempt to bridge efforts to address the issues of ozone-layer protection and climate change, Indonesia has composed the Bali Declaration," the Environment Minister said during a speech at the 2013 International Ozone Day Seminar in Jakarta. The Minister pointed out that the Declaration on Transitioning to Low Global Warming Potential Alternatives from Ozone-Depleting Substances had received support from 110 countries under the Montreal Protocol. Kambuaya believed that the declaration served as a reminder and invitation to all parties in the country to choose an alternative to ozone-depleting substances by considering the technological aspects of reducing the potential for global warming. He also believed that all parties needed to conduct studies on appropriate technologies to protect the environment and urged developed countries to provide funding through the Multilateral Fund to minimize any impact on the global climate. "The Bali Declaration also encourages the Wina Convention, the Montreal Protocol, and the Kyoto Protocol to the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change to continue to work together to protect the environment," he said. Kambuaya suggested that 2013 is an important year for countries affected by Article 5 of the Montreal Protocol, because it could be a turning point in meeting the target to freeze the consumption of hydrochlorofluorocarbons (HCFCs) or to return to the baseline figure. The baseline figure is the average consumption of HCFCs; in 2009 and 2010, the Indonesian figure was 403.91 Ozone Depleting Potential tons and 6,261.03 tons of HCFCs. Kambuaya explained that various efforts to achieve these targets were already being conducted by the government, including joint efforts by the ministers for the environment, industry, and trade, who have fixed the national HCFC import quota since 2012 to control the entry of HCFCs into Indonesia. With the quota, he claimed that Indonesia`s imports of HCFCs were controlled in 2012, reaching 5,001.87 tons of HCFCs, or 20 percent below the baseline figure. "Therefore, in 2013, we are pretty optimistic that it will not exceed the target fixed by the government for the Montreal Protocol," he added.