Cambodia Keeps on Track to Cut off Ozone destroyer by 2010

By Soy Sophea

Cambodian environment experts are convinced that Cambodia will reach its goal of producing no chlorofluorocarbon halomethane, a greenhouse gas more commonly known
as CFC-12 by 2010.

Khieu Muth, secretary of state at the Ministry of Environment, said during a one-day seminar at Sunway Hotel in Phnom Penh on March 7 that Cambodia looked set fair to achieve its target to abolish CFC-12. An 85 percent reduction in the use of CFC-12 must be achieved by 2008, and by 2010 there should be no CFC-12 emitted in any part of the nation. This will bring Cambodia in line with the rest of the world, as according to the Minister “There is no other country currently using it.”

Muth said that between 2002 and 2004, 94 tones of CFC-12 were used in Cambodia, but since a three-year project costing US $ 890,000, funded by the United Nations for Development Program and the Global Environment Fund, this figure has fallen dramatically.

He confirmed that Cambodia had well thought-out contingency plans to ensure smoother implementation of the project. “We have achieved a 22.8 metric ton reduction in consumption of CFCs as a refrigerant, as a result of retrofitting 3,402 cars with ozone
friendly means of air conditioning. This measure alone will allow us to reach our 85 percent reduction goal for 2008—by March 2008, 3,155 cars had been changed their refrigerants.

Nearly 50 participants from relevant parts of the project including Cambodian government officers, customs officers and garage owners took part in the workshop.

Cambodia ratified the Vienna Convention and the Montreal Protocol on June 27, 2001. The Vienna Convention was established to protect the ozone layer in 1985. Following this, the Montreal Protocol on substances that deplete the ozone layer was introduced in 1997 with the objective of reducing and finally phasing out the use of these substances.