The Federal Government of Nigeria has said it would ban all ozone depleting substances from use in Nigeria beginning from January 1, 2023, in accordance with the Montreal Protocol Agreement, an international treaty designed to protect the ozone layer through phasing out all substances believed to be responsible for its depletion, to which Nigeria is a signatory to.
These include all substances that are not ozone friendly such as: refrigerators, generators, water dispensers, toasters, photocopiers among others.
This was disclosed by Mr. Oladipo Supo, of the environment unit of the United Nations Development Program, UNDP, at a stakeholders workshop for the validation of the national cooling plan, in Abuja.
According to Supo, Nigeria has delayed in the implementation of the agreement because it had not been able to get alternatives for the substances that are ozone friendly.
“We started with Hydrochlorofluorocarbons, HCFCs, and now we will replace them with hydrofluorocarbons, HFCs, which is where we are today.
“Under the Montreal Protocol Agreement, the idea is that some of the ozone depleting substances are actually eliminated from use.
“Nigeria has commited itself because it is part of the signatory. We are looking at January 1, 2023 when some of these substances will not be allowed into the country anymore,” Supo said.