THE commemorative ceremony for 2023 International Day for the Preservation of the Ozone Layer took place at the Environmental Conservation Department in Nay Pyi Taw yesterday morning. Union Minister for Natural Resources and Environmental Conservation U Khin Maung Yi, deputy ministers, officials, National Ozone Unit members, officials from industrial refrigeration associations, and teachers and students from the Technological University and the Technical Institute participated in the occasion.

The Union minister said that 16 September 1987, when the Montreal Protocol was signed, was designated as the International Day for the Preservation of the Ozone Layer, and the theme for 2023 International Day for the Preservation of the Ozone Layer is “Fixing the ozone layer and reducing climate change”. It aims to protect the ozone layer and reduce climate change by reducing the use of hydrofluorocarbons (HFC), which are greenhouse gases.

He continued that Myanmar has agreed to be a member of four additional amendments to the Montreal Protocol and has participated in international activities related to the protection of the ozone layer to control the effects of ozone depletion on human health and the environment. In order to reduce hydrofluorocarbons (HFC), the use of HFCs will be controlled and limited starting in 2024 and will be reduced to 80 per cent by 2045.

The Union minister also stated that it is important to import and distribute refrigerants that reduce energy consumption and carbon emissions, educate the public to reduce the use of substances with a high potential for global warming and increase technology promotion courses and research activities that do not harm the ozone layer, climate, or the environment. He called for relevant departments, associations, entrepreneurs, researchers, and the public as a whole to cooperate in climate change mitigation processes along with protecting the ozone layer.

All participants took collective photos after the UN Secretary-General’s video message and the awareness video commemorating World Ozone Day were shown. Finally, the Union minister and the attendees toured the display of commemorative posters.

 MNA/CT

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