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On October 8, 2021, the Chinese Ministry of Ecology and Environment (MEE), Development and Reform Commission and Ministry of Industry and Information Technology published the revised List of Controlled Ozone Depleting Substances in China (Announcement No. 44 of 2021) [1](hereinafter referred to as the List), which took effect immediately. The List of 2010 version was abrogated at the same time. Compared to the latest version of the List for consultation, there were no changes in this final revised version.
According to the Kigali Amendment to the Montreal Protocol on Substances that Deplete the Ozone Layer (hereinafter referred to as the Kigali Amendment), the MEE drafted the amendments to the List[2] for public consultation on August 16, 2021. The comments period ended on August 20, 2021.
The revisions to the List were summarized as follows:
(a) Adding new types of controlled substances: A large category of 18 types of HFCs was added, with their main uses and reduction obligations.
(b) Clarifying the definition of "controlled substances": The chemicals in the Annexes of the Protocol and all their isomers are clarified as controlled substances of the Protocol.
(c) Updating chemical information involving Chinese name, GWP, ODP of some substances in the List to be consistent with the Protocol.
The List was firstly published in 2010 by the former Ministry of Environmental Protection, together with the Development and Reform Commission and the Ministry of Industry and Information Technology. It serves as a basis for the control of the production, sale, use, import and export of controlled substances in China according to the Regulation on the Administration of Ozone Depleting Substances[3](hereinafter referred to as the Regulation).
According to the Kigali Amendment, greenhouse gas hydrofluorocarbons (HFCs) has been regulated under the Protocol since 2016. Showing strong political commitment to the Montreal Protocol, China, which joined the Montreal Protocol in 1991, will take on new controls of HFCs as well as other substances with the Kigali Amendment. Therefore, when the Amendment entered into force in China on September 15, 2021 (CL news[4]), all controlled substances and their uses and corresponding phase down requirements listed in the Protocol were fully and accurately translated in the List.
China has taken arduous efforts to smooth the implementation of the Kigali Amendment.
On September 10, 2021, China issued the Notice on the Control of By-product HFC-23 Emissions (Huan Ban Han [2021] No. 432)[5], which clarifies the Protocol's requirements for by-product HFC-23 compliance and related regulatory measures.
On October 25, 2021, the Ministry of Ecology and Environment, the Ministry of Commerce and the General Administration of Customs released the "List of Import and Export of Controlled ODS in China"[6], which adjusted the commodity codes of some ODSs and added the commodity codes of HFCs. Since November 1, 2021, China has officially implemented an import and export licensing system for HFCs. Enterprises engaged in the import and export of HFCs should apply to the State Office of Import and Export of ODSs in accordance with the provisions of the "Administrative Measures for the Import and Export of Ozone Depleting Substances". An import and export license must be applied then after approval for customs clearance.
In the near future, China will incorporate the HFCs reduction plan into the National Program for Phasing Out ODS by carrying out HFCs data collection and analysis and industry research, and propose areas, roadmaps and policies for the future implementation of HFCs reduction. A quota and record management for the production, sale and use of HFCs will also be implemented to ensure that China achieves its compliance targets for the production and use of HFCs in 2024 and beyond.
