Cash for China key to fast ban on ozone-depleting chemicals

0 Comments | AFP, September, 2007

MONTREAL (AFP) — An accelerated ban on ozone-depleting chemicals is within reach, but China's holdout for financial aid to meet the new timetable could scuttle a deal, officials at a UN conference said Monday.

"We have essentially a commitment in principle to continue the multilateral funding ... We have agreement on the timeline," said Achim Steiner, executive director of the United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP).

However nations "like China and a few others clearly face major transformation costs and this is what we're trying to deal with in this agreement," Steiner said.

The current calendar calls for developed countries to stop using anti-ozone compounds found in many refrigerators, fire retardants and hairspray by 2030, and for developing nations...