Eng
On December 5th and 7th, in the frames of EU4Climate project, in cooperation with National Ozone Center of the Ministry of Environment, thematic discussions on “Assessment of end-of-life (EOL) Ozone Depleting Substances (ODS) and Hydrofluorocarbon (HFCs) destruction capacities in Armenia” were conducted.
The discussions focused on regulations under Armenia-EU Comprehensive and Enhanced Partnership Agreement (CEPA) for the recovery, recycling or destruction of ODS and HFCs and the assessment of the potential of their application. Since Armenia is currently developing institutional framework conditions for the establishment of infrastructure for relevant waste management, including destruction of end-of-life ODS, the collection, recovery and destruction of ODS continues to remain a complex and timely issue.
Liana Ghahramanyan, the Coordinator of the National Ozone Center, presented the overview of ODS consumption, providing details on the volume and nature of ODS and the HFCs bank, the available opportunities for the destruction of these substances.
Diana Harutyunyan, UNDP Climate Change Programme Coordinator highlighted the importance of the discussion, noting that the harmonization of local legislative regulations with the EU and the assessment of the country's needs are also crucial for achieving the goals of reducing emissions of HFCs as greenhouse gases.
The International Consultant of EU4Climate project, Bhaskar Nath presented details on necessary procedures for destruction of ODS and HFCs, the feasibility of these procedures, the opportunities of improving capacities for environmentally friendly management and destruction of ODS and application of technologies.
The best destruction technologies (cement kilns), their working mechanism, installation and security conditions, monitoring of waste generated during burning were also discussed.
During the meetings, the participants raised the existing problems and gaps in this area and exchanged ideas on improving current regulations and capacity building.
Representatives from the National Ozone Center of the Ministry of Environment, Atmospheric Policy Department, Hazardous Waste Policy Department and cement factories in Armenia attended the discussions.
