Tanzania cuts use of ozone depleting chemicals By ZEPHANIA UBANI | Wednesday, May 16  2012 at  11:20

Tanzanian industries have reduced the use of ozone depleting chemicals by 86 per cent by 2009, according to an East African Community official responsible for natural resources and environment.

Until 1999, the country used about 254 tonnes of such chemicals per year but they have since then been reduced to 35.76 tonnes annually three years ago, a 86 per cent drop, Mr Julius Achiula said.

The drop has also been attributed to the change of production technologies by many local industries as well as installation of ozone-friendly equipment at most of the high-rise buildings in Dar es Salaam.

The equipment includes air cooling systems and alternative chemicals whose application have minimum effect on ozone, a thin layer on the earth’s atmosphere which protects the earth from the harmful radiation from the sun.

Mr Achiula, who was speaking during a training for air conditioning and refrigeration technicians, said Mansoor Daya,Ply Foam and Pan African Enterprises were among the factories which have changed to ozone-friendly production techniques.

Molecules

“It is our hope that other factories will opt for the alternative technologies and chemicals which would not deplete ozone as per the regulations under the Montreal Protocol,” he explained.

Ozone depletion has been blamed on large-scale release of some chemical compounds, notably chloroflourocarbons (CFCs) and bromoflourocarbons through man-made activities.

The chemicals are not easily degradable. Experts say the breakdown of ozone in the atmosphere results in the ozone molecules being unable to absorb ultra-violet radiation. Reports say ozone levels over the northern hemisphere have been dropping by four per cent per decade since the 1980s.

Mr Achiula said the National Programme on Montreal Protocol targets capacity building for institutions overseeing the process and to have adequate database on the gravity of the problem.

Other measures include sensitising the business community on the harmful effects of ozone depletion,to promote and adopt the alternative and ozone-friendly technologies as well as training industrial technicians.

Also under the programme, there would be deliberate efforts to set up centres where the harmful chemicals would be neutralised in refrigerators and air cooling systems. The latter are widely used in areas, which experience high temperatures like Dar es Salaam.

According to him, about a half of the remaining hazardous chemicals are used in industrial production and commercial enterprises while 50 per cent is generated by domestic appliances.