“The Government of Sri Lanka was one of the first in the world to ratify the Kigali Amendment, showing our commitment to addressing the climate crisis. We have a responsibility to minimize global warming.”- M.P.D.U.K Mapa Pathirana
Secretary State Ministry of Mahaweli Development and Environment, Sri Lanka
Colombo, 29 May 2019 - The National Ozone Unit (NOU), Ministry of Mahaweli Development and Environment, Sri Lanka in partnership with UN Environment OzonAction Branch and UNDP, conducted a workshop on 27-30 May 2019 in Colombo, Sri Lanka, to discuss HCFC (hydrochlorofluorocarbon) phase-out and HFC (hydrofluorocarbon) phase-down imperatives with key stakeholders from the country.
The workshop was attended by over 70 participants including a wide range of representatives from Sri Lankan Government Ministries (with expertise in areas of urban development, finance, education, agriculture and customs); as well as sector technicians and engineers; and representatives from the building/construction, railways and fishing industries (major end-users of refrigeration and cooling technologies).
In the opening remarks from UNDP Sri Lanka’s representative, Ms Tharuka Dissanaike, it was noted that Sri Lanka is ahead of the curve in the region in Montreal Protocol implementation, but the challenges aren’t over yet - further country-wide cooperation between private sector, government and others is needed.
Also in the opening remarks, UN Environment OzonAction Montreal Protocol Officer for South Asia, Ms Liazzat Rabbiosi, stressed that the world is now in a climate crisis (not just ‘climate change’). It was unanimously acknowledged by presenters and participants that Sri Lanka is entering a challenging phase: whilst still in the middle of phase-out of HCFCs, they now have to look at phase-down of HFCs, meaning they are faced with a very complicated market to manage, with multiple refrigerants in use.
In a very special occurrence, three generations of National Ozone Officers were all present at the workshop to see the progress that Sri Lanka has made, as well as Mr S.P.K Amarasinghe - the former Principal of Ceylon German Technical Training Institute (Sri Lanka’s foremost technical institute in the sector).
Some particularly interesting points raised by the participants were: the need to mainstream Montreal Protocol into other policy areas including climate change; the need for an increased general knowledge of environment and climate change; and mainstreaming these issues into TVET curriculum, ensuring the right competence of refrigeration servicing technicians to handle alternatives to HFCs. There was a general consensus that awareness of Recovery, Recycling, Reclamation (RRR) technologies is still minimal among stakeholders. Participants also discussed the recently enforced government regulation requiring all servicing workshop to have a recovery machine to be able to renew their trade licenses, yet most of the Refrigeration and Air-Conditioning (RAC) workshops across the country do not have these machines. Many participants also raised queries around Energy Efficiency standards for domestic refrigerators and room air-conditioning being developed by the Sustainable Energy Authority of Sri Lanka.
On 30 May 2019, the NOU with the assistance of the OzonAction Branch, organized a productive roundtable with end-users – major supermarket chain, railway, cold chain, diary and engineering companies - of refrigeration and air-conditioning equipment to discuss issues around the phasing-down of HFCs and the implication to them. The feedback received from this workshop was that it was very helpful: practical workshops providing technology overview and policy directions for the sector are valued by these end-users.
Interestingly, the roundtable participants echoed some of the thoughts raised by the workshop participants in the days prior, expressing the need for general information and general awareness around the Kigali Amendment and Climate Change, as well as concerns around RRR – especially access and availability.
The Sri Lankan Government is making progress towards achieving its 35% reduction obligation in the use of HCFCs and preparing for Stage II from 2020 onward. Some discussions are taking place whether the country is ready to go for a full phase out by 2025 instead of 2030. Concurrently, having ratified the Kigali Amendment in September last year, the Government is putting in place measures to meet its initial obligations through the Enabling Activities Project funded by the Multilateral Fund.
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION
Liazzat Rabbiosi
Montreal Protocol Officer for South Asia
UN Environment OzonAction
Email: Liazzat.rabbiosi@un.org
