At the invitation of the United Nations Environmental Program (UNEP) Ozone Secretariat, the WCO Tariff and Trade Affairs Directorate delivered a presentation at the headquarters of the Ozone Secretariat in Nairobi, Kenya, on 22 May.
The WCO representative touched upon several issues of mutual concern to both the global Customs community and the Ozone Secretariat, in particular the creation of Harmonised System (HS) codes in order to control the phase-down of hydrofluorocarbons (HFCs) which are not ozone-depleting but contain high global warming potential and therefore affect the climate. Following the adoption of the Amendment to the Montreal Protocol at the 28th Meeting of the Parties in Kigali, Rwanda, parties would begin collecting data on production and consumption of those substances which they would be required to report to the Ozone Secretariat on an annual basis.
In this regard, the WCO representative emphasised the importance of the WCO assisting the Parties to the Montreal Protocol by designating individual HS codes for the agreed HFCs in order to facilitate the implementation of the Kigali Amendment to the Montreal Protocol, which was expected to enter into force on 01 January 2019.
In their closing remarks the WCO indicated that in the past it had facilitated the amendments to the HS Nomenclature in respect of Ozone Depleting Substances (ODS) namely CFCs, HCFCs and other substances. The separate HS codes for ODS are instrumental in paving the way for prevention of illegal trade in those substances and their eventual phase out. They re-emphasised their desire for the Ozone Secretariat to continue its cooperation with the WCO.
