On December 19, 2000, the United Nations General Assembly designated September 16 of every year as the International Day for the Preservation of the Ozone Layer. The designation came as a result of the world nations signing in 1987 the Montreal Protocol on Substances that Deplete the Ozone Layer.”
Thirty years after the signing of the Montreal Protocol, experts have started to notice the closure of the hole in the ozone layer. However, the chemical effects depleting the ozone “are expected to continue for between 50 to 100 years,” according to Dani Cooper in “Hole in the ozone layer is finally ‘healing. (ABC News. Australian Broadcasting Corporation).
Via RedAndr – ERA-40 data from ECMWF
And Lebanon has decided to step up and do its shares in helping the world, to which we integrally belong, to heal the Ozone, and that by seeing to the industries generating these gazes detrimental to the ozone and the environment.
On the World Ozone Day, Minister of Environment Fadi Jreissati inaugurated the advanced vocational training center for refrigeration and air conditioning at the “Ecole des Arts et Métiers” in Dekwaneh.
The opening ceremony was attended by many prominent figures in the field, including the head of the National Ozone Unit of Lebanon, Mazen Hussein.
This new inaugurated Center is a world-class and financed by the Multilateral Fund of the Montreal Protocol, which is part of the National Ozone Unit work plan of the Ministry of Environment.
Mr. Mazen Hussein spoke about the work of the unit throughout the past years. He explained how it converted 107 Lebanese factories into industries friendly to the ozone and the environment.
That work amounting to about $26 million was funded by the Multilateral Fund of the Montreal Protocol, according to Mr. Hussein who also shared that they’re currently working on the rest of the industries; about 16 factories remaining.
He also pointed out that, due to limited experience in maintenance operations in this sector, this center will provide the necessary training to the technicians and students working in this sector so they can “build their technical capacity to deal with alternatives to ozone and environmentally-friendly refrigerants.”
From his side, Minister of Environment Fadi Jreissati noted on the symbolism of the World Ozone Day and the opening of the training center on this day, thanking the team for their work in qualifying and equipping 5 vocational colleges in all Lebanese regions.
He concluded by stressing that”The Ministry of Environment, in collaboration with the United Nations Development Program (UNDP), and through the National Ozone Unit, has developed an action plan for the years 2019-2027 for the phase-out of hydrochlorofluorocarbons (HCFCs) from 980 tons of consumption in 2011 to 30 tons in 2027 through many activities and projects.”
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