The Montreal Protocol is widely regarded as the most successful environmental accord in history. It has already achieved phase-downs of over 95% of 97 different chemicals responsible for ozone depletion in developed countries and 50-75% of these chemicals in developing countries. This has prevented over 100 gigatons (Gts) of CO2 equivalent emissions – twenty times the reductions to be achieved by the emission reductions under the Kyoto Protocol (see graph below). These results have been obtained through work with precisely the same industrial and economic sectors that now use hydrofluorocarbons (HFCs), making the Montreal Protocol the most experienced and credible entity for reducing production and use of high-Global Warming Potential (GWP) HFCs used in refrigeration, air conditioning, foam-blowing and other applications.
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