5 July 2019: The 41st meeting of the Open-ended Working Group of the Parties to the Montreal Protocol on Substances that Deplete the Ozone Layer (OEWG 41) laid the groundwork for decisions to be taken at the 31st Meeting of the Parties (MOP 31), which will convene in November 2019.

Over 450 participants from governments, UN agencies, intergovernmental and non-governmental organizations, academia, and industry attended OEWG 41, which convened in Bangkok, Thailand, from 1-5 July 2019.

In her opening statement to OEWG, Tina Birmpili, Executive Secretary, Ozone Secretariat, highlighted the need for continued national vigilance and enforcement and for improving global monitoring. Agenda items that were discussed and kept open for MOP 31’s further consideration included:

• unexpected emissions of trichlorofluoromethane (CFC-11);
• terms of reference (ToR) for the study on the 2021-2023 replenishment of the Multilateral Fund for the Implementation of the Montreal Protocol;
• review of the ToR, composition, balance, fields of expertise and workload of the Technology and Economic Assessment Panel (TEAP); and
• ToR for the 2022 Quadrennial Assessment.

Agenda items whose discussions were concluded at OEWG 41 and noted in the meeting report include: risk of non-compliance with hydrochlorofluorocarbon (HCFC) production and consumption reduction targets by the Democratic People’s Republic of Korea; and safety standards.

The Earth Negotiations Bulletin analysis looks at the Montreal Protocol’s more than 30-year history of surmounting challenges, including those related to an “old” or “settled” subject such as CFC-11, by channeling the guiding principles and practices of the Montreal Protocol: trust in science; trust among Parties; and trust in the Protocol itself. It highlights that “a number of Parties lamented that an inordinate amount of time has been occupied at OEWG 41, and will be required at MOP 31, to continue to address the illegal usage of CFC-11.” It notes that the commitment to support other Parties exemplifies the trust that Parties have historically had in each other and the continued desire to preserve this trust. [ENB Coverage of OEWG 41]