Focus on Arts and Ecology

In June, the New York Times broke a major story showing that Chinese companies were likely behind a spike in CFC-11, an ozone-depleting chemical that was banned under the Montreal Protocol. chinadialogue reported in August that the Chinese government was investigating the issue and cracking down on illegal production. According to the People’s Daily, the Ministry of Ecology and Environment and local environment bureaus recently identified one source of the pollution, breaking up a CFC-11 production den in Henan province this August. The unauthorised production was hidden within another factory. The authorities seized 29.9 tonnes of CFC-11 and 30 tonnes of carbon tetrachloride – a feedstock for CFC-11, which they will dispose of safely. Research in Natureclaimed that around 13,000 tonnes of CFC-11 have been illegally released – most of that production is likely from China, based on research by the UK-based NGO Environmental Investigation Agency. Three people were arrested and two more are being looked for.