Montreal Protocol Meeting Concludes

At a meeting in Montreal from March 24-26, the international community approved the continued use of limited quantities of the agricultural pesticide methyl bromide for the United States and eleven other countries for 2005. Due to the lack of technically and economically feasible alternatives, which have taken much longer than anticipated to develop, methyl bromide remains an essential pesticide for the production of a number of important crops, including tomatoes, strawberries and peppers. Because methyl bromide contributes to depletion of the ozone layer, countries agreed in 1995 to phase out its use by 2005 in developed countries (and 2015 in developing countries), provided that technically and economically feasible alternatives could be developed and marketed by that time.

The meeting in Montreal took place under the auspices of the 1987 Montreal Protocol on Substances that Deplete the Ozone Layer, which sets timetables for eliminating production of chemicals that damage the ozone layer. The United States, which has long been a leader in these international efforts, has already phased out use of almost all chemicals other than methyl bromide that deplete the ozone layer, such as chlorofluorocarbons (CFCs) and halons. In most cases, the United States took such action by the mid-1990’s, well ahead of the phase out schedules mandated in the Montreal Protocol.

As technically and economically feasible alternatives have not been developed for all uses of methyl bromide, the United States, using the criteria provided for in the Montreal Protocol, requested an exemption in 2005 equivalent to about 39% of the amount used in the United States in 1991. The Montreal Protocol’s technical body reviewed this request and recommended that the vast majority of the U.S. request, about 35 percent of the amount used in 1991, be approved by the Parties to the Protocol.

At Montreal, the United States was one of twelve countries granted a critical use exemption. Specifically, the United States succeeded in obtaining the Parties’ approval for its 2005 critical use request, which amounted to 35% of its 1991 baseline use of methyl bromide. Of that amount, a maximum of 30% could be covered by new production of the chemical. The remaining five percent is expected to come from drawdowns from existing inventory. The arrangement endorsed by the Parties also allows the United States to re-allocate amounts of the chemical among approved sectors. In addition, the United States will continue to pursue in meetings later this year a supplemental 2005 request of two percent of its 1991 baseline use of methyl bromide for several agricultural sectors not included in its initial request.

The international community continues to make great progress in phasing down the use of ozone depleting substances, including methyl bromide and in protecting the ozone layer. For the United States, the amount of methyl bromide that has been approved for continued use in 2005 represents less than two percent of U.S. emissions of all ozone depleting substances in 1987.

The decisions taken in Montreal are important because they will allow for the continued viability of important agricultural sectors in many parts of the world, including the United States, while continuing the international effort to minimize and eventually phase out use of this ozone depleting substance as soon as possible.

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