Conditions for granting and reporting critical-use exemptions for methyl bromide

The First Extraordinary Meeting of the Parties decided:

1.   that each Party which has an agreed critical use under the present decision should submit available information to the Ozone Secretariat before 1 February 2005 on the alternatives available, listed according to their pre-harvest or post-harvest uses and the possible date of registration, if required, for each alternative; and on the alternatives which the Parties can disclose to be under development, listed according to their pre-harvest or post-harvest uses and the likely date of registration, if required and known, for those alternatives, and that the Ozone Secretariat shall be requested to provide a template for that information and to post the said information in a database entitled “Methyl Bromide Alternatives” on its web site;

2.   that each Party which submits a nomination for the production and consumption of methyl bromide for years after 2005 should also submit information listed in paragraph 1 to the Ozone Secretariat to include in its Methyl Bromide Alternatives database and that any other Party which no longer consumes methyl bromide should also submit information on alternatives to the Secretariat for inclusion in that database;

3.   to request each Party which makes a critical-use nomination after 2005 to submit a national management strategy for phase-out of critical uses of methyl bromide to the Ozone Secretariat before 1 February 2006. The management strategy should aim, among other things:

      (a)  to avoid any increase in methyl bromide consumption except for unforeseen circumstances;

      (b)  to encourage the use of alternatives through the use of expedited procedures, where possible, to develop, register and deploy technically and economically feasible alternatives;

      (c)  to provide information, for each current pre-harvest and post-harvest use for which a nomination is planned, on the potential market penetration of newly deployed alternatives and alternatives which may be used in the near future, to bring forward the time when it is estimated that methyl bromide consumption for such uses can be reduced and/or ultimately eliminated;

      (d)  to promote the implementation of measures which ensure that any emissions of methyl bromide are minimized;

      (e)  to show how the management strategy will be implemented to promote the phase out of uses of methyl bromide as soon as technically and economically feasible alternatives are available, in particular describing the steps which the Party is taking in regard to subparagraph (b) (iii) of paragraph 1 of decision IX/6 in respect of research programmes in non-Article 5 Parties and the adoption of alternatives by Article 5 Parties;

4.   to request the Meeting of the Parties to take into account information submitted pursuant to paragraphs 1 and 3 of the present decision when it considers permitting a Party to produce or consume methyl bromide for critical uses after 2006;

5.   to request a Party that has submitted a request for a critical use exemption to consider and implement, if feasible, Technology and Economic Assessment Panel and Methyl Bromide Technical Options Committee recommendations on actions which a Party may take to reduce critical uses of methyl bromide;

6.   to request any Party submitting a critical-use nomination after 2004 to describe in its nomination the methodology used to determine economic feasibility in the event that economic feasibility is used as a criterion to justify the requirement for the critical use of methyl bromide, using as a guide the economic criteria contained in section 4 of annex I to the present report;

7.   to request each Party from 1 January 2005 to provide to the Ozone Secretariat a summary of each crop or post-harvest nomination containing the following information:

      (a)  name of the nominating Party;

      (b)  descriptive title of the nomination;

      (c)  crop name (open field or protected) or post-harvest use;

      (d)  quantity of methyl bromide requested in each year;

      (e)  reason or reasons why alternatives to methyl bromide are not technically and economically feasible;

8.   to request the Ozone Secretariat to post the information submitted pursuant to paragraph 7 above, categorized according to the year in which it was received, on its web site within 10 days of receiving the nomination;

9.   to request the Technology and Economic Assessment Panel:

      (a)  to identify options which Parties may consider for preventing potential harmful trade of methyl bromide stocks to Article 5 Parties as consumption is reduced in non-Article 5 Parties and to publish its evaluation in 2005 to enable the Seventeenth Meeting of the Parties to decide if suitable mitigating steps are necessary;

      (b)  to identify factors which Article 5 Parties may wish to take into account in evaluating whether they should either undertake new accelerated phase-out commitments through the Multilateral Fund for the Implementation of the Montreal Protocol or seek changes to already agreed accelerated phase-outs of methyl bromide under the Multilateral Fund;

      (c)  to assess economic infeasibility, based on the methodology submitted by the nominating Party under paragraph 6 above, in making its recommendations on each critical-use nomination. The report by the Technology and Economic Assessment Panel should be made with a view to encouraging nominating Parties to adopt a common approach in assessing the economic feasibility of alternatives;

      (d)  to submit a report to the Open-ended Working Group at its twenty-sixth session on the possible need for methyl bromide critical uses over the next few years, based on a review of the management strategies submitted by Parties pursuant to paragraph 3 of the present decision;

      (e)  to review critical-use nominations on an annual basis and apply the criteria set forth in decision IX/6 and of other relevant criteria agreed by the Parties;

      (f)  to recommend an accounting framework for adoption by the Sixteenth Meeting of the Parties which can be used for reporting quantities of methyl bromide produced, imported and exported by Parties under the terms of critical-use exemptions, and after the end of 2005 to request each Party which has been granted a critical-use exemption to submit information together with its nomination using the agreed format;

      (g)  to provide, in consultation with interested Parties, a format for a critical-use exemption report, based on the content of annex I to the present report, for adoption by the Sixteenth Meeting of the Parties, and to request each Party which reapplies for a methyl bromide critical-use exemption after the end of 2005 to submit a critical-use exemption report in the agreed format;

      (h)  to assess, annually where appropriate, any critical-use nomination made after the end of 2006 in the light of the Methyl Bromide Alternatives database information submitted pursuant to paragraph 1 of the present decision, and to compare, annually where appropriate, the quantity, in the nomination, of methyl bromide requested and recommended for each pre-harvest and post-harvest use with the management strategy submitted by the Party pursuant to paragraph 3 of the present decision;

      (i)   to report annually on the status of re-registration and review of methyl bromide uses for the applications reflected in the critical-use exemptions, including any information on health effects and environmental acceptability;

      (j)   to report annually on the status of registration of alternatives and substitutes for methyl bromide, with particular emphasis on possible regulatory actions that will increase or decrease dependence on methyl bromide;

      (k)  to modify the handbook on critical-use nominations for methyl bromide to take the present decision and other relevant information into account, for submission to the Sixteenth Meeting of the Parties.

(UNEP/OzL.Pro.ExMP/1/3, Decision Ex.I/4).

The Second Extraordinary Meeting of the Parties decided:

1.   for the agreed critical uses for 2006, set forth in table A of the annex to the present decision, to permit, subject to the conditions set forth in the present decision and in decision Ex. I/4, to the extent those conditions are applicable, the supplementary levels of production and consumption for 2006 set forth in table B of the annex to the present decision which are necessary to satisfy critical uses, with the understanding that additional levels and categories of uses may be approved by the Seventeenth Meeting of the Parties in accordance with decision IX/6;

2.   that a Party with a critical-use exemption level in excess of permitted levels of production and consumption for critical uses is to make up any such difference between those levels by using quantities of methyl bromide available from existing stocks;

3.   that each Party which has an agreed critical use shall take into full consideration all quantities of existing stocks of methyl bromide and that the sum of these quantities shall be reported in 2006 in column G of the Framework Report, as set out in annex II to the report of the Sixteenth Meeting of the Parties, subject to confidentiality and disclosure clauses of domestic laws and regulations. Where all or part of the quantities are withheld pursuant to such laws and regulations, the reasons for withholding the quantities in column G shall be footnoted appropriately;

4.   that Parties that have an agreed critical use shall endeavour to license, permit, authorize or allocate the quantities of methyl bromide recommended by the Technology and Economic Assessment Panel to the specific categories of use shown in table A of the annex to the present decision;

5.   that each Party which has an agreed critical use renews its commitment to ensure that the criteria in paragraph 1 of decision IX/6 are applied when licensing, permitting or authorizing the use of methyl bromide and that such procedures take into account quantities of methyl bromide available from existing stocks;

6.   to request Parties licensing, permitting or authorizing methyl bromide that is used for 2006 critical uses to ensure, wherever methyl bromide is authorized for critical-use exemptions, the use of emission minimization techniques such as virtually impermeable films, barrier film technologies, deep shank injection and/or other techniques that promote environmental protection, whenever technically and economically feasible.

      Table A: Agreed critical-use categories

      Table B: Permitted levels of production and consumption of methyl bromide to satisfy critical uses in 2006

(UNEP/OzL.Pro.ExMP/2/3, Decision Ex.II/1).

The Seventeenth Meeting of the Parties decided:

1.   for the agreed critical-use categories for 2006, set forth in table A of the annex to the present decision for each Party, to permit, subject to the conditions set forth in the present decision and decision Ex.I/4 to the extent that those conditions are applicable, the levels of production and consumption for 2006 set forth in table B of the annex to the present decision which are necessary to satisfy critical uses;

2.   for the agreed critical-use categories for 2007, set forth in table C of the annex to the present decision for each Party, to permit, subject to the conditions set forth in the present decision and in decision Ex. I/4, the levels of production and consumption for 2007 set forth in table D of the annex to the present decision which are necessary to satisfy critical uses, with the understanding that additional levels of production and consumption and categories of uses may be approved by the Meeting of the Parties to the Montreal Protocol in accordance with decision IX/6;

3.   that a Party with a critical use exemption level in excess of permitted levels of production and consumption for critical uses is to make up any such differences between those levels by using quantities of methyl bromide from stocks that the Party has recognized to be available;

4.   that Parties shall endeavour to license, permit, authorize or allocate quantities of critical-use methyl bromide as listed in tables A and C of the annex to the present decision;

5.   that each Party which has an agreed critical use renews its commitment to ensure that the criteria in paragraph 1 of decision IX/6 are applied when licensing, permitting or authorizing critical use of methyl bromide and that such procedures take into account available stocks of banked or recycled methyl bromide. Each Party is requested to report on the implementation of the present paragraph to the Ozone Secretariat by 1 February for the years to which this decision applies;

6.   that Parties licensing, permitting or authorizing methyl bromide that is used for 2007 critical uses shall request the use of emission minimization techniques such as virtually impermeable films, barrier film technologies, deep shank injection and/or other techniques that promote environmental protection, whenever technically and economically feasible;

7.   to request Parties to endeavour to use stocks, where available, to meet any demand for methyl bromide for the purposes of research and development;

8.   to request the Quarantine and Pre-shipment Task Force of the Technology and Economic Assessment Panel to evaluate whether soil fumigation with methyl bromide to control quarantine pests on living plant material can in practice control pests to applicable quarantine standards, to evaluate the long-term effectiveness of pest control several months after fumigation for this purpose and to provide a report in time for the twenty-sixth meeting of the Open-ended Working Group;

9.   that each Party should ensure that its national management strategy for the phase-out of critical uses of methyl bromide addresses the aims specified in paragraph 3 of decision Ex.I/4;

10.  to request the Technology and Economic Assessment Panel and its Methyl Bromide Technical Options Committee to report for 2005 and annually thereafter, for each agreed critical use category, the amount of methyl bromide nominated by a Party, the amount of the agreed critical use and either:

      (a)  the amount licensed, permitted or authorized; or

      (b)  the amount used.

      Table A. 2006 agreed critical-use categories (metric tonnes)

      Table B: Permitted levels of production and consumption of methyl bromide to satisfy critical uses in 2006

      Table C: 2007 agreed critical-use categories (metric tonnes)

      Table D: 2007 permitted levels of production and consumption (metric tonnes)

(UNEP/OzL.Pro.17/11, Decision XVII/9).

The Eighteenth Meeting of the Parties decided:

1.   for the agreed critical-use categories for 2007, set forth in table A of the annex to the present decision for each Party, to permit, subject to the conditions set forth in the present decision and decision Ex.I/4 to the extent that those conditions are applicable, the levels of production and consumption for 2007 set forth in table B of the annex to the present decision which are necessary to satisfy critical uses, in addition to the amounts permitted in decision XVII/9;

2.   for the agreed critical-use categories for 2008 set forth in table C of the annex to the present decision for each Party to permit, subject to the conditions set forth in the present decision and in decision Ex.I/4, to the extent that those conditions are applicable, the levels of production and consumption for 2008 set forth in table D of the annex to the present decision which are necessary to satisfy critical uses, with the understanding that additional levels of production and consumption and categories of uses may be approved by the Meeting of the Parties to the Montreal Protocol in accordance with decision IX/6;

3.   that when assessing supplemental requests for critical use exemptions for 2008 for a specific nomination, the Technology and Economic Assessment Panel should take into account the most current information, including any information on domestic implementation of related 2007 and 2008 critical uses, in accordance with paragraph 2 of decision IX/6;

4.   that a Party with a critical use exemption level in excess of permitted levels of production and consumption for critical uses is to make up any such differences between those levels by using quantities of methyl bromide from stocks that the Party has recognized to be available;

5.   that Parties shall endeavour to license, permit, authorize or allocate quantities of critical-use methyl bromide as listed in tables A and C of the annex to the present decision;

6.   that each Party which has an agreed critical use renews its commitment to ensure that the criteria in paragraph 1 of decision IX/6 are applied when licensing, permitting or authorizing critical use of methyl bromide and, in particular, the criterion laid down in paragraph 1(b) (ii) of decision IX/6. Each Party is requested to report on the implementation of the present paragraph to the Ozone Secretariat by 1 February for the years to which this decision applies;

7.   to request the Technology and Economic Assessment Panel to publish annually in its progress report beginning in 2007 and prior to each Open-ended Working Group meeting the stocks of methyl bromide held by each nominating Party as reported in its accounting framework report;

8.   that Parties licensing, permitting or authorizing methyl bromide that is used for 2008 critical uses shall request the use of emission minimization techniques such as virtually impermeable films, barrier film technologies, deep shank injection and/or other techniques that promote environmental protection, whenever technically and economically feasible;

9.   that each Party should continue to ensure that its national management strategy for the phase-out of critical uses of methyl bromide addresses the aims specified in paragraph 3 of decision Ex.I/4.

      Table A.: 2007 agreed critical-use categories (metric tonnes)

      Table B: 2007 permitted levels of production and consumption (metric tonnes)

      * The production and consumption of the European Community shall not exceed 689.1416 metric tonnes for the purposes of the agreed critical uses.

      Table C: 2008 agreed critical-use categories (metric tonnes)

      * All or part of the supplementary amount of 1.8 metric tonnes, if required, is conditional on the Technical and Economic Assessment Panel’s recommendation in its 2007 progress report.

      Table D: 2008 permitted levels of production and consumption (metric tonnes)

      * All or part of the supplementary amount of 1.8 metric tonnes, if required, is conditional on the Technical and Economic Assessment Panel’s recommendation in its 2007 progress report.

(UNEP/OzL.Pro.18/10, Decision XVIII/13).

The Nineteenth Meeting of the Parties decided:

1.   to permit, for the agreed critical-use categories for 2008 set forth in table A of the annex to the present decision for each Party, subject to the conditions set forth in the present decision and decision Ex.I/4 to the extent that those conditions are applicable, the levels of production and consumption for 2008 set forth in table B of the annex to the present decision which are necessary to satisfy critical uses, in addition to the amounts permitted in decision XVIII/13;

2.   to permit, for the agreed critical-use categories for 2009 set forth in table C of the annex to the present decision for each Party, subject to the conditions set forth in the present decision and in decision Ex.I/4 to the extent that those conditions are applicable, the levels of production and consumption for 2009 set forth in table D of the annex to the present decision which are necessary to satisfy critical uses, with the understanding that additional levels of production and consumption and categories of uses may be approved by the Meeting of the Parties in accordance with decision IX/6;

3    to request the Technology and Economic Assessment Panel to ensure that recent findings with regard to the adoption rate of alternatives are annually updated and reported to the Parties in its first report of each year and inform the work of the Panel;

4.   that when assessing supplemental requests for critical use exemptions for 2009 for a specific nomination, the Technology and Economic Assessment Panel should take into account the most current information, including any information on domestic implementation of related 2008 and 2009 critical uses, in accordance with paragraph 2 of decision IX/6;

5.   that a Party with a critical use exemption level in excess of permitted levels of production and consumption for critical uses is to make up any such differences between those levels by using quantities of methyl bromide from stocks that the Party has recognized to be available;

6.   that Parties shall endeavour to license, permit, authorize or allocate quantities of critical-use methyl bromide as listed in tables A and C of the annex to the present decision;

7.   that each Party which has an agreed critical use renews its commitment to ensure that the criteria in paragraph 1 of decision IX/6 are applied when licensing, permitting or authorizing critical use of methyl bromide and, in particular, the criterion laid down in paragraph 1 (b) (ii) of decision IX/6. Each Party is requested to report on the implementation of the present paragraph to the Ozone Secretariat by 1 February for the years to which this decision applies;

8.   to request the Technology and Economic Assessment Panel to continue publishing annually in its progress report prior to each meeting of the Open‑ended Working Group the stocks of methyl bromide held by each nominating Party as reported in that Party’s accounting framework report;

9.   to recognize the continued contribution of the Methyl Bromide Technical Options Committee’s expertise and to agree that, in accordance with section 4.1 of the Technology and Economic Assessment Panel’s terms of reference, the Committee should continue to develop its recommendations in a consensus process that includes full discussion among all available members of the Committee;

10.  to note the importance of transparency in the critical‑use exemption process and to request the Technology and Economic Assessment Panel to provide to the Open-ended Working Group at its next meeting a written explanation of its methodology for using its meta-analysis in its work and to disclose to the Parties in a written explanation any significant changes or deviations it intends to make to that methodology before it undertakes any such change or deviation;

11.  that Parties licensing, permitting or authorizing methyl bromide for critical uses shall request the use of emission minimization techniques such as virtually impermeable films, barrier film technologies, deep shank injection and/or other techniques that promote environmental protection, whenever technically and economically feasible;

12 . that each Party should continue to ensure that its national management strategy for the phase-out of critical uses of methyl bromide addresses the aims specified in paragraph 3 of decision Ex.I/4;

Critical-use exemptions for 2008 and 2009

Table A. 2008 agreed critical-use categories (metric tonnes)

*      This amount was first approved in decision XVIII/13, conditional on the Technology and Economic Assessment Panel’s 2007 progress report.

Table B: 2008 permitted levels of production and consumption (metric tonnes)

*      The production and consumption of the European Community shall not exceed 245.146 metric tonnes for the purposes of the agreed critical uses.

**    This amount was first approved in decision XVIII/13, conditional on the Technology and Economic Assessment Panel’s 2007 progress report.

Table C: 2009 agreed critical-use categories (metric tonnes)

Table D: 2009 permitted levels of production and consumption (metric tonnes)

*      Minus available stocks

(UNEP/OzL.Pro.19/7, Decision XIX/9).

The Twentieth Meeting of the Parties decided:

1.   to permit, for the agreed critical-use categories for 2009 set forth in table A of the annex to the present decision for each Party, subject to the conditions set forth in the present decision and decision Ex.I/4 to the extent that those conditions are applicable, the levels of production and consumption for 2009 set forth in table B of the annex to the present decision which are necessary to satisfy critical uses, in addition to the amounts permitted in decision XIX/9;

2.   to permit, for the agreed critical-use categories for 2010 set forth in table C of the annex to the present decision for each Party, subject to the conditions set forth in the present decision and in decision Ex.I/4 to the extent that those conditions are applicable, the levels of production and consumption for 2010 set forth in table D of the annex to the present decision which are necessary to satisfy critical uses, with the understanding that additional levels of production and consumption and categories of uses may be approved by the Meeting of the Parties in accordance with decision IX/6;

3.   to request the Technology and Economic Assessment Panel to ensure that recent findings with regard to the adoption rate of alternatives are annually updated and reported to the Parties in its first report of each year and inform the work of the Panel;

4.   that when assessing supplemental requests for critical use exemptions for 2010 for a specific nomination, the Technology and Economic Assessment Panel should take into account the most current information, including any information on domestic implementation of related 2009 and 2010 critical uses, in accordance with paragraph 2 of decision IX/6;

5.   that a Party with a critical use exemption level in excess of permitted levels of production and consumption for critical uses is to make up any such differences between those levels by using quantities of methyl bromide from stocks that the Party has recognized to be available;

6.   that Parties shall endeavour to license, permit, authorize or allocate quantities of critical-use methyl bromide as listed in tables A and C of the annex to the present decision;

7.   that each Party which has an agreed critical use renews its commitment to ensure that the criteria in paragraph 1 of decision IX/6 are applied when licensing, permitting or authorizing critical use of methyl bromide and, in particular, the criterion laid down in paragraph 1 (b) (ii) of decision IX/6. Each Party is requested to report on the implementation of the present paragraph to the Ozone Secretariat by 1 February for the years to which the present decision applies;

8.   to request the Technology and Economic Assessment Panel to continue publishing annually in its progress report prior to each meeting of the Open-ended Working Group the stocks of methyl bromide held by each nominating Party as reported in that Party’s accounting framework report;

9.   to recognize the continued contribution of the Methyl Bromide Technical Options Committee’s expertise and to agree that, in accordance with section 4.1 of the Technology and Economic Assessment Panel’s terms of reference, the Committee should ensure that it develops its recommendations in a consensus process that includes full discussion among all available members of the Committee and should ensure that members with relevant expertise are involved in developing its recommendations;

10.  to request the Technology and Economic Assessment Panel to ensure that the critical-use recommendations reported in its annual progress report clearly set out the reasons for recommendations and that, where requests are received from Parties for further information, the Methyl Bromide Technical Options Committee should provide a response within four weeks of submission of such a request;

11.  that Parties licensing, permitting or authorizing methyl bromide for critical uses shall request the use of emission minimization techniques such as virtually impermeable films, barrier film technologies, deep shank injection and/or other techniques that promote environmental protection, whenever technically and economically feasible;

12.  that each Party should continue to ensure that its national management strategy for the phase-out of critical uses of methyl bromide addresses the aims specified in paragraph 3 of decision Ex.I/4, and that each Party should periodically update or provide supplements to its national management strategy to provide new information on actions, such as identifying alternatives or regulatory updates, being undertaken to make significant progress in reducing critical use nominations, and indicating currently envisaged progress towards a phase-down;

13.  to request the Technology and Economic Assessment Panel to ensure that its consideration of nominations analyse the impact of national, subnational and local regulations and law on the potential use of methyl bromide alternatives, and include a description of the analysis in the critical use nomination report;

Annex to decision XX/5

Critical-use exemptions for methyl bromide for 2009 and 2010

Table A. 2009 agreed critical use categories (metric tonnes)

Table B. 2009 permitted levels of production and consumption (metric tonnes)

Table C. 2010 agreed critical use categories (metric tonnes)

Table D. 2010 permitted levels of production and consumption (metric tonnes)

*Minus available stocks.

(UNEP/OzL.Pro.20/9, Decision XX/5).