India has decided in principle to sign the revised Montreal Protocol,
the agreement which aims to cut emissions of gases which harm the Earth’s
ozone layer. But a final decision will depend on whether industrial ised
countries will pay the $1.2 billion it needs to switch to ozone-friendly
technology.
China also signed the revised protocol at a meeting of treaty members
in Nairobi last month. According to an agreement reached last June, with
these new signatories, up to $240 million should be paid by industrialised
countries into a fund to aid transfer of ozone-friendly technology.
So far, the fund contains only $9.3 million, and no new pledges were
made in Nairobi.
