42nd Meeting of the Open-ended Working Group of the Parties to the Montreal Protocol on Substances that Deplete the Ozone Layer (OEWG 42)

In light of the continued COVID-19 global pandemic, the forty-second meeting of the Open-ended Working Group of the parties to the Montreal Protocol (OEWG 42) will hold three identical, online technical sessions, in different time zones, from 14-16 July 2020. During these sessions, the Technology and Economic Assessment Panel (TEAP) Replenishment Task Force on the replenishment of the Multilateral Fund will present its report to the parties. Each session will also feature a question-and-answer segment.

The sessions are organized as follows:

• The first session will begin at 5 pm Central European Time (CET) on Tuesday, 14 July;
• The second session will begin at 11 am CET on Wednesday, 15 July; and
• The third session will begin at 7am CET on Thursday, 16 July.

An online forum has also been established for parties to submit comments and questions on the Task Force’s report. Initial comments and questions are to be submitted by Monday, 6 July 2020, so that they can be disseminated to parties and addressed by the Task Force during the online session. Parties will then have an additional two weeks to submit further questions and comments. The Task Force will respond in the form of a note. A consolidated document will be produced, which will serve as the basis for discussions when parties next meet physically.

Parties will also be able to use a dedicated online forum to review and submit comments and questions on the Methyl Bromide Technical Options Committee’s (MBTOC) report on critical-use nominations by 6 July 2020. The MBTOC will provide written responses. Based on the comments and questions received, and following bilateral consultations with nominating parties—to be held from 7- 31 July 2020—the MBTOC will prepare its final evaluation by the end of September 2020.

A dedicated online forum will also be established for parties to discuss the budgets for the trust funds for the Vienna Convention and the Montreal Protocol. The respective documents will be posted by 18 August 2020. The Secretariat will provide written responses.

The outcomes of these discussions will inform parties’ negotiations at the joint twelfth meeting of the conference of the parties to the Vienna Convention and thirty-second meeting of the parties to the Montreal Protocol (COP 12/MOP 32), tentatively scheduled for November 2020. The Secretariat will continue to monitor the evolution of the COVID-19 pandemic, consult the Bureaux and the parties, and inform the parties by the end of September 2020 at the latest of the decision regarding COP 12/MOP 32.

The 1985 Vienna Convention for the Protection of the Ozone Layer is a framework convention that aims to promote cooperation by exchanging information on the effects of human activities on the ozone layer Adopted in 1987, the Montreal Protocol is the sole protocol to the Vienna Convention. The Protocol seeks to control and phase out ozone-depleting substances (ODS) such as chlorofluorocarbons (CFCs), halons, carbon tetrachloride (CTC), methyl chloroform, methyl bromide, hydrobromofluorocarbons, and HCFCs. Under the 2015 Kigali Amendment, the Protocol is phasing down hydrofluorocarbons (HFCs), substitutes for many ODS that have been found to have a high global warming potential.

The OEWG meets annually for Parties to deliberate on issues to be addressed at forthcoming Meetings of the Parties (MOPs). These deliberations are informed and supported by scientific assessments. For more information, see the Earth Negotiations Bulletin (ENB) summary and analysis from MOP 31 in 2019.

IISD Reporting Services, through its ENB Meeting Coverage, is providing daily web coverage of the online technical sessions and publish a summary report and brief analysis on Monday, 20 July 2020.