While the work of the Montreal Protocol is not done and much more remains to be accomplished before we can assure the protection of the ozone layer for this and future generations, the Parties to the Protocol have accomplished a great deal since the treaty was originally agreed to in 1987:
Truly global participation:
In 2009 the Montreal Protocol became the first United Nations treaty to achieve universal ratification,
demonstrating the world’s commitment to ozone protection, and more broadly, to global environmental protection;
Elimination of ozone depleting substances: As of the end of 2009, the Parties to the Protocol had phased out the consumption of 98% of all of the chemicals controlled by the Protocol;
Healing the ozone layer: Global observations have verified that atmospheric levels of key ozone
depleting substances are going down and it is believed that with implementation of the Protocol’s
provisions the ozone layer should return to pre-1980 levels by the middle of this century;
Supporting developing countries: With the assistance of the Multilateral Fund for the
Implementation of the Montreal Protocol,
developing countries had, by mid 2010, permanently phased out over 270,000 tonnes of ozone depleting substances that had been used to produce various products and have eliminated virtually all of their production of CFCs and halons;
High rates of compliance: Taking into account all the Parties and all their phase-out commitments,
the Parties to the Montreal Protocol have achieved a compliance rate of over;
98%. Further, in the process of phasing-out, many countries, both developed and developing, have met their phaseout targets well ahead of schedule;
Health benefits: In terms of health benefits, controls implemented under the Montreal Protocol
have enabled the global community to avoid millions of cases of fatal skin cancer and tens of
millions of cases of non fatal skin cancer and cataracts. The United States estimates that by the
year 2165 more than 6.3 million skin cancer deaths will have been avoided in that country alone
and that efforts to protect the ozone layer will have saved it an estimated $4.2 trillion in health
care costs over the period 1990–2165.
This year, the U.S Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) estimated that more than 22 million additional cataract cases will be avoided for Americans born
between 1985 – 2100 due to Montreal Protocol;
Climate change benefits: The Protocol has also delivered substantial climate benefits. Because ozone
depleting substances are also global warming gases, the reduction in ozone depleting substances
between 1990, when they reached peak levels, and the year 2000 has yielded a net integrated reduction of approximately 25 billion tonnes of CO2 weighted global warming gasses. These significant reductions make the Montreal Protocol one of the prime global contributors in the fight against global warming;
Global recognition: In 1995, recognition of the importance of the ozone issue and the contribution
of science to ozone layer protection efforts came in the form of the Nobel Prize for Chemistry,
which was awarded to Sherwood Rowland, Mario Molina and Paul Crutzen for their pioneering
work on ozone depletion. In addition, in 2003, political recognition of the Protocol came in the
statement of then United Nations Secretary General Kofi Annan, who termed the Montreal
Protocol “perhaps the single most successful international environmental agreement to date”;
2010 phase-out milestone: 1 January 2010 was the date by which all the Parties phased-out
the consumption and production of chlorofluorocarbons, halons, carbon tetrachloride and other
fully hydrogenated ozone depleting substances.
