Summary of the 27th Meeting of the Parties to the Montreal Protocol (MOP 27), 29-30 October and 1-5 November 2015 | Dubai, United Arab Emirates (UAE)

The twenty-seventh Meeting of the Parties to the Montreal Protocol on Substances that Deplete the Ozone Layer (MOP 27) met from 1-5 November 2015, in Dubai, United Arab Emirates (UAE). Over 500 participants from governments, UN agencies, intergovernmental and non-governmental organizations, academia, and industry attended the joint meeting. MOP 27 adopted a number of substantive and procedural decisions.

Substantive decisions included: essential-use exemptions (EUEs) and critical-use exemptions (CUEs); avoiding the unwanted import of products and equipment containing or relying on hydrochlorofluorocarbons (HCFCs); and a Technology and Economic Assessment Panel (TEAP) report on alternatives to ozone depleting substances (ODS). Procedural decisions adopted include: budget; organizational issues related to the TEAP; and membership of Montreal Protocol bodies for 2015.

MOP 27 immediately followed the two-day resumed session of the 36th Open-ended Working Group (OEWG 36), which had agreed on a mandate for a contact group on the feasibility and ways of managing hydrofluorocarbons (HFCs).

The contact group was established and HFCs were the “major topic” under debate throughout the week. Following protracted negotiations that finally concluded in the early hours of Friday morning, parties agreed to a “roadmap” for negotiating an HFC amendment; this agreement included provision for an additional OEWG meeting and an extraordinary MOP in 2016.

IISD Reporting Services, through its ENB Meeting Coverage, provides daily web coverage, reports, summary and analysis report from the Resumed 36OEWG and 27th Meeting of the Parties to the Montreal Protocol, taking place from 29 to 30 October and 1 to 5 November 2015, from Dubai, United Arab Emirates (UAE).