The Montreal Protocol: Together It Can Be Done

In the wake of the USA announcing that it was again quitting the Paris Agreement and putting more money in fossil fuels amidst people talking about whether or not the Paris Agreement has made a real change it brought to mind an earlier global climate agreement – The Montreal Protocol.

A quick breakdown of the Montreal Protocol

1. It was adopted in September 1987

2. Considered a landmark environmental agreement as it was signed by 197 states and the EU reaching universal ratification

3. Meant to fight the substances that destroy the ozone layer

At the time it was adopted climate activists were talking about the hole in the ozone and the consequences of the depleting ozone layer. This is no longer the one of the most relevant climate agendas. Why?

Because working together on a global level worked.

The UN Environmental Programme reports that the parties who ratified the Protocol have eliminated 98% of the ozone destroying substances compared to the levels at adoption. Not only that but the reduction in these substances has also reduced greenhouse gases.

The Montreal Protocol did what the Paris Agreement is still struggling to do – it succeeded. There is still work to and the Protocol has been amended and continued to contribute to the fight against climate change.

Results

• The most successful environmental agreement to date

• The ozone layer is projected to recover by mid-century

• Creation of The Multilateral Fund which provides assistance, financial and technical, to developing counties. This Fund has supported 8,500+ projects since its inception in 1991.

• The Kigali Amendment of the Protocol is the biggest reason for the global temperature not having risen to levels that the climate cannot recover from.

It worked once – it can work again.