Montreal Protocol: a success story of global cooperation

September 16 is celebrated as International Ozone Day, and the MoEF (Ministry of Environment and Forests), Government of India, needs to be congratulated for having observed this day in a series of events held in Hyderabad, Andhra Pradesh. Far too much attention has been provided in the past to doing things in the capital city of Delhi. But if environmental protection is to become part of our agenda in every sphere of activity, then it is essential that the message be understood and actions be implemented in the states of the Indian Union. The celebrations in Hyderabad were attended by the Hon?ble Union Minister of Environment and Forests, Mr T R Baalu; the Hon?ble Chief Minister of Andhra Pradesh, Mr Chandrababu Naidu; and the Secretary in the MoEF, Mr P V Jayakrishnan, among several others. I was asked to deliver the keynote address at this function, and it was most heartening to see a large audience of thousands of schoolchildren who stole the limelight on the occasion with speeches and performances carrying the message of environmental protection in general, and the protection of the earth?s ozone layer in particular. The Montreal Protocol has been a heartening success story of global cooperation and the implementation of a global agreement. The swiftness with which the world community acted in arriving at the Montreal Protocol, setting up the Multilateral Fund to assist in phasing out ozone-depleting substances has been a remarkable achievement. So far, 1.3 billion US dollars has been committed to this Fund, and in several cases, actions required are actually ahead of schedule. The Government of India has shown remarkable foresight right from the stage of preparation of the country programme for implementation of the Montreal Protocol in 1993 and its implementation. The programme itself was arrived at through an unusual partnership between the government, industry, and a research institution, TERI, which was entrusted with the responsibility of providing all the research inputs for this effort and coordinating the entire activity on behalf of the MoEF. The extent of damage caused to the earth?s stratospheric ozone layer is so great that even with actions under the Montreal Protocol, it would be only by the year 2050 that the ozone layer would be restored to pre-1980 levels. Even this date, unfortunately, is in danger of being overshot, because a number of new substances have come into use, which also have an ozone-depleting effect, and these are not covered as yet under the Montreal Protocol. Careful monitoring, research, and subsequent action would be necessary to see that these substances do not negate the efforts being made under the Protocol. It is necessary for the states of India to monitor the damage from environmental effects at the global level, such as in the case of ozone depletion and global climate change. Our ecosystems are fragile, the health of human beings and animals critically important, and the impacts on agriculture significant for the livelihood of our human population. Hence, it is important for us to evaluate and adapt ourselves to likely impacts, so that the effects of these global environmental problems do not cause us sudden harm and unbearable loss.