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Montreal Protocol on Ozone
On environmental issues, the
nations of the world seem to have a hard time reaching
consensus, except in the case of the Montreal Protocol,
which has become the symbol of the fact that treaties
can be effective in solving problem created by humanity,
in this instance, the deterioration of the Earth's
atmospheric ozone layer.
The Montreal
Protocol on Substances that Deplete the Ozone
Layer was signed in 1987 and currently some 180
nations have pledged to comply with reduction
targets in the production and use of CFCs (chlorofluorocarbon
gases), halons and methyl bromide, whose presence
in the atmosphere is considered the main cause of
the thinning of the ozone layer.
Coinciding with the World Day
for the Preservation of the Ozone Layer, Sep 16, the
preliminary conclusion of a scientific
study (PDF file) about the problem were released.
The experts
say the signatory nations are complying with the Montreal
Protocol and that the ozone layer could begin to recover
by the end of the decade, but warn that continued
compliance with the international treaty is essential.
The problem of the thinning ozone
layer became a public issue in the early 1980s, and
in 1983 world leaders signed the Vienna
Convention, the first legal instrument to promote
actions for preserving the ozone layer. But at that
time, it was not seen as an urgent issue. Just 20
countries participated.
With time, the problem of the
ozone hole that appears regularly over Antarctica
became more widely known. Scientists warned that the
thinning of the ozone layer would allow excessive
ultraviolet rays to reach the Earth's surface, a threat
to all life forms on the planet.
The Montreal Protocol entered
into force in 1989 when 29 countries plus the European
Union, producers at the time of 89 percent of the
ozone-depleting substances, had ratified the treaty.
Today, one of the key aspects
of the Protocol is the participation of developing
countries in meeting the reduction targets. Developing
nations have until 2010 to halt all use of materials
that are damaging to the ozone layer.
In addition to the Ozone
Secretariat of the United Nations Environment
Program (UNEP), the Protocol has given rise to other
entities, such as the Multilateral
Fund, which helps poor countries implement the
technological conversions necessary to replace the
use of ozone-depleting gases.
The United Nations Development
Program (UNDP)
and the World
Bank also have projects oriented in this direction,
towards compliance with the targets established in
the Montreal Protocol.
The
Montreal Protocol, 1987
Vienna
Convention, 1985
UNEP:
Ozone Secretariat
Nations
party to the conventions on protecting the ozone layer
Multilateral
Fund for the Implementation of the Montreal Protocol
UNDP's
role in Montreal Protocol
WMO:
Ozone Bulletins
World
Bank and the Montreal Protocol
OzoneAction:
info on the state of the ozone layer, 2002
EPA
scientific study on the ozone layer
Disarmament
Disarmament campaigns are almost
always identified with the objective of peace. But
there is another argument for working to reduce weapons
worldwide: the nearly 900 billion dollars spent every
year on weapons and arms research mean fewer resources
are available for sustainable development, and thus
threaten the environment.
The United
Nations Department for Disarmament Affairs issued
a warning shortly before the World Summit on Sustainable
Development, alerting the international community
that the rise in military spending shifts important
financial, material and human resources towards non-productive
sectors.
Furthermore, the trend of spending
more on weapons -- reaching levels not seen since
the Cold War -- also implies a latent threat to the
environment and to the social and economic development
of nations, says the UN
disarmament entity on its Internet site.
Global efforts for disarmament
target weapons of mass destruction, like nuclear bombs,
and conventional weapons alike. Concern about this
topic is evident on the Internet,
where numerous web sites provide information about
different groups' strategies and mechanisms aimed
at halting the arms race.
There are international agreements
on disarmament and weapons non-proliferation, such
as the Tlatelolco
Treaty signed by Latin American countries that
the region will not accept nuclear weapons. Nevertheless,
regional conflicts proliferate around the world, and
some are even global in scope, and could potentially
involve nuclear arsenals, even more harmful than their
manufacture or trade.
Disarmament issues also cover
small and light weapons, of which there are an estimated
500 million existing around the world, according to
the Brazilian web site Desarme.org. Each year, such
weapons are used in killing a half-million people,
200,000 of whom are victims of homicide, other crimes,
suicide and accidents.
United
Nations & Disarmament
UN:
Disarmament mission
UN
Institute for Disarmament Research
UNIDIR
disarmament links
NGO
Committee on Disarmament
Agency
for the Prohibition of Nuclear Weapons in Latin America
and the Caribbean (OPANAL)
The
Acronym Institute
Nuclear
Disarmament Partnership
Yahoo!:
web sites about disarmament
After the Johannesburg
Summit
The World Summit on Sustainable
Development drew 104 heads of state, 9,000 delegates,
8,000 representatives of non-governmental organizations
and 4,000 journalists, according to the official count.
But what did the event produce?
Most of the press dispatches
coming out of Johannesburg on Sep 4, the last day
of the Summit, reported on the reactions to the event's
final outcomes. While the organizers expressed satisfaction,
civil society representatives criticized the lack
of commitments made by the governments.
The Summit's official
website reflects part of the official reaction.
In response to criticisms about the lack of concrete
proposals for action, United Nations Secretary General
Kofi Annan stated that Johannesburg was not the end
of a process, but rather, "It's
the beginning."
During the 10 days that the delegates
were gathered in the South African city, there was
a great deal of inspired press
coverage, heated debate, and numerous websites
dedicated to the WSSD. Much of that activity halted
when the Summit was over, although there will surely
be commentaries, analysis and evaluations for months
to come about one of the biggest international conferences
ever held.
In the meantime, the Internet
is a source of information about the outcomes of the
Summit. Still available on the worldwide web is the
digital version of the daily TerraViva,
which circulated in its print version during the WSSD,
as is the UN's own Internet coverage "WSSD Live".
Digging through the official
site, one can also find, in PDF format, the final
published versions of the Johannesburg Declaration
and the Plan
of Action signed by world leaders at the close
of the meeting.
And other websites already have
posted their comments about the Summit. "I am
satisfied that what has been delivered is a step forward,"
says Klaus Toepfer, executive director of the United
Nations Environment Program (UNEP),
acknowledging that the negotiations were very difficult.
The World Wildlife Fund (WWF),
meanwhile, points out that no effective plan was reached
for sustainable development, and wonders about the
ability of future multilateral efforts to eradicate
poverty and protect the environment. Greenpeace,
for its part, titled its Spanish-language dispatch
about the results of Johannesburg: "Nothing for
the poor, nothing for the environment."
Political
Declaration
Action
Plan
UN
Press Release on Water and Sanitation Agreement
Official
WSSD Website
TerraViva/IPS:
an unofficial record of the Summit
UNEP
Chief Comments on the Summit
UN:
WSSD Live
UN
Secretary General: "This is just the beginning."
Yahoo!
Coverage: Stories and links
Greenpeace
International: Perspectives on WSSD
WWF:
The Future of Multilateralism
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