SINGAPORE: The world’s ozone layer is on “the road to long-term recovery” despite a destructive volcanic eruption in the South Pacific, the World Meteorological Organization said on Tuesday, after efforts to phase out ozone-depleting chemicals.
On current trends, the ozone layer is on track to recover to 1980 levels by around 2066 over the Antarctic, 2045 over the Arctic and 2040 for the rest of the world, the United Nations agency said.
Though the volcanic eruption near Tonga in early 2022 led to a short period of accelerated depletion of ozone above Antarctica last year, driven by higher levels of atmospheric water vapor, overall losses were limited, it said in its annual ozone bulletin.
The ozone layer protects the earth from the sun’s ultraviolet radiation, which is linked to skin cancer and other health risks.
The Montreal Protocol, which came into effect in 1989, agreed to phase out chlorofluorocarbons and other ozone-depleting substances, and its success “stands out as a powerful symbol of hope” at a time when multilateral cooperation has come under strain, said UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres in a statement.
CFCs have been largely replaced by hydrofluorocarbons, which do not cause ozone depletion but are a powerful climate-warming greenhouse gas.
Countries are now implementing the 2016 Kigali amendment to Montreal, which will phase down HFC production, and could avoid around 0.5 degrees Celsius of warming by 2100.
China remains the world’s biggest HFC producer, with current capacity the equivalent of nearly 2 billion metric tons of carbon dioxide. About a quarter is exported.
China’s environment ministry said on Monday it would soon publish a plan to better control HFC production. As a developing country, it is obliged to cut HFC consumption by 85 percent from 2013 to 2045.
China is cutting manufacturing quotas and cracking down on illegal production, but it warned this year it still “faces huge challenges” in phasing down HFCs, which are used by a wide range of different industries, many of which have struggled to find substitute products.
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Ozone layer on road to recovery despite volcano eruption, UN weather body says
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Ozone layer on road to recovery despite volcano eruption, UN weather body says
- On current trends, the ozone layer is on track to recover to 1980 levels by around 2066 over the Antarctic, 2045 over the Arctic and 2040 for the rest of the world, the United Nations agency said
Hong Kong ex-media tycoon Jimmy Lai faces sentencing after national security conviction
- Founder of now-defunct Apple Daily newspaper could face up to life in prison in the case that has stirred criticism
- Jimmy Lai previously was convicted of several lesser offenses related to fraud allegations and his actions in 2019
HONG KONG: Hong Kong’s pro-democracy former media tycoon Jimmy Lai will be sentenced Monday following his conviction in December under a Beijing-imposed national security law.
Lai, the 78-year-old founder of the now-defunct Apple Daily newspaper, could face up to life in prison in the case that has stirred criticism from some foreign governments.
The judiciary said Friday on its website that it’s calling for the sentencing session at 10 a.m. Monday.
Lai was an outspoken critic of China’s ruling Communist Party and was arrested in 2020 under the national security law that Beijing deemed necessary for the city’s stability following anti-government protests the previous year.
His trial was widely seen as an indicator of the decline of press freedom in the former British colony, which returned to Chinese rule in 1997. But the city’s government insists the case has nothing to do with media freedom.
The sentencing could create tensions between Beijing and foreign governments. Lai’s conviction already drew criticism from the US and Britain. After the December verdict, US President Donald Trump, who had raised Lai’s case with China, said he felt “so badly.” UK Prime Minister Keir Starmer’s administration has called for the release of Lai, who is a British citizen.
Hong Kong’s Chief Justice Andrew Cheung said in January that calls for prematurely releasing a defendant based on political causes or identity circumvent legal procedures to ensure accountability and “strike at the very heart of the rule of law itself.”
Lai was found guilty of conspiring with others to collude with foreign forces and conspiracy to publish seditious articles. He was accused of conspiring with senior executives of Apple Daily and others to ask foreign forces to impose sanctions or blockades or engage in other hostile activities against Hong Kong or China.
Lai pleaded not guilty to all charges, while the six former Apple Daily journalists and two activists who are co-defendants entered pleas that could result in reduced sentences. They all are expected to return to court Monday to hear their fate.
Lai previously was convicted of several lesser offenses related to fraud allegations and his actions in 2019. He is serving a nearly six-year prison term for the fraud case.
Lai, the 78-year-old founder of the now-defunct Apple Daily newspaper, could face up to life in prison in the case that has stirred criticism from some foreign governments.
The judiciary said Friday on its website that it’s calling for the sentencing session at 10 a.m. Monday.
Lai was an outspoken critic of China’s ruling Communist Party and was arrested in 2020 under the national security law that Beijing deemed necessary for the city’s stability following anti-government protests the previous year.
His trial was widely seen as an indicator of the decline of press freedom in the former British colony, which returned to Chinese rule in 1997. But the city’s government insists the case has nothing to do with media freedom.
The sentencing could create tensions between Beijing and foreign governments. Lai’s conviction already drew criticism from the US and Britain. After the December verdict, US President Donald Trump, who had raised Lai’s case with China, said he felt “so badly.” UK Prime Minister Keir Starmer’s administration has called for the release of Lai, who is a British citizen.
Hong Kong’s Chief Justice Andrew Cheung said in January that calls for prematurely releasing a defendant based on political causes or identity circumvent legal procedures to ensure accountability and “strike at the very heart of the rule of law itself.”
Lai was found guilty of conspiring with others to collude with foreign forces and conspiracy to publish seditious articles. He was accused of conspiring with senior executives of Apple Daily and others to ask foreign forces to impose sanctions or blockades or engage in other hostile activities against Hong Kong or China.
Lai pleaded not guilty to all charges, while the six former Apple Daily journalists and two activists who are co-defendants entered pleas that could result in reduced sentences. They all are expected to return to court Monday to hear their fate.
Lai previously was convicted of several lesser offenses related to fraud allegations and his actions in 2019. He is serving a nearly six-year prison term for the fraud case.
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