Indonesia sets up National Halon Bank

Indonesia sets up National Halon Bank

Muninggar Sri Saraswati, The Jakarta Post, Jakarta

In observance of the 16th International Ozone Day, Indonesia
inaugurated a National Halon Bank in a bid to help achieve the
country's target of eliminating the use of ozone-depleting
products (ODPs) by 2007.

Halon, a gas that is usually used by the aviation industry, is
included on the ODP list.

The bank will be operated by the Garuda Maintenance Facility
(GMF)-AeroAsia, which is located at the Soekarno-Hatta
International Airport in Tangerang, Banten.

GMF-AeroAsia officer Wildan Rajiman said here on Tuesday that
the government had appointed the company to run the bank after it
won a contract from the Office of the State Minister for the
Environment on March 22, 2000.

According to Wildan, the halon bank will be equipped with the
technology needed to reclaim or recycle Halon 1211 and 1301, as
well as a storage tank for the recycled or reclaimed halon.

Under the contract, GMF-AeroAsia will also be responsible for
preventing the recycled or reclaimed halon from being used again.

The bank will come under the supervision of the National Ozone
Unit at the Office of the State Minister for the Environment,
which will monitor and survey halon supply and consumption.

"The bank is ready to support the country's commitment to
stopping ODP usage," said Wildan.

Gunardi, an assistant to the environment minister on
atmospheric and climate change, said that halon was one of the
ODPs that were most frequently used due to the absence of a
suitable substitute, which was why the government had organized
the setting up of the bank to store recycled or reclaimed halon.

He said that freon (CFC 11, CFC 12 and CFC 113) was still the
biggest contributor to ozone layer depletion in Indonesia. Freon
has been used for years in the industrial sector.

In daily usage, products that employ freon include
refrigerators, various types of foam and air-conditioners.

"Indonesia does not produce ODPs but imports them from China
and India," Gunardi said, adding that Indonesia no longer
imported freon-based products in order to demonstrate its
commitment to stopping ODP usage.

Between 1994 and 2002, Indonesia managed to eliminate some
4,000 tons of ODPs with financial assistance from several
international institutions.

Gunardi said that Indonesia still had to eliminate an
additional 5,000 tons of ODPs used in a wide variety of products
here.

The consumption of ODPs is estimated to amount to an average
of 0.03 kilograms per capita per year, far below the maximum
limit of 0.3 kilograms per capita.

Indonesia has targeted the halting of ODP imports by 2007,
three years earlier than the deadline of 2010 set by the Montreal
Protocol. Indonesia is one of the signatories to the protocol.

Most countries, especially industrialized ones, have been
encouraged to adopt the protocol because damage to the ozone
layer allows more ultraviolet radiation to reach the earth's
surface, with serious consequences for human, animal and plant
health.