HPC-IEA special issue

First ever-institutional dialogue
The governing bodies of these two MEAs, as well as their subsidiary bodies for assessment of science and technology and their implementation mechanisms, have been addressing interlinkages of atmospheric issues to a differing extent. The assessment panels under the MP have been doing a remarkable job of providing scientific information to governments to enable them to take policy decisions aimed at environmental protection. Notably, the Scientific Assessment Panel (SAP) of the MP has been actively affirming the interlinkages between climate change and ozone depletion. Its first assessment in 1989 indicated the interlinkage issue and reported the relative Global Warming Potentials (GWP) of Ozone Depleting Substances (ODS). Its subsequent reports, published in 1991, 1994, and 1998, closely examined, inter alia, the impact of temperature change in the stratosphere and troposphere as a result of global warming; its impact on the rate and extent of ozone layer depletion; the impact of nitrous oxides and other chemical variants. The International Panel on Climate Change (IPCC), which has collaborated with the SAP from its inception, present a striking assessment in their 1999 report, “AVIATION AND THE GLOBAL ATMOSPHERE”, of the potential impacts of emissions from aircraft travel. It is an excellent example of how more and more interlinkages are being scrutinised by leading scientists all over the world through cooperative efforts.

The Technology and Economic Assessment Panel (TEAP) and its Technical Options Committee under the MP have also been actively promoting the implications of the use of ozone-friendly technologies in diminishing or aggravating climate change and vice-a versa. For example, the Technical Options Committee on Refrigeration and Air-Conditioning and Heat Pumps has highlighted the GWP of Refrigerants as well as elaborated in detail the concept of TEWI (Total Equivalent Warming Impact).

As the implementation of the MP proceeded and as new a technologies were put in use, knowing whether these new technologies contributed to global warming became essential. Obviously no one wanted to deploy technologies that are transitional in nature and that are likely to adversely affect climate change. Such examples include Hydrofluorocarbons (HFCs) and Perfluorocarbons (PFCs). These gases have zero ozone depleting potential and were a perfect solution to untie one knot in ozone layer protection. However, they are also part of the basket of green house gasses, whose emissions were sought to be controlled under the Kyoto Protocol. Also, industries did not want to simply deploy ozone and climate-friendly technologies which may be energy inefficient. Such solutions only solve part of the problem.

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