There is broad agreement that the 1986 Montreal Protocol, which addressed ozone-depleting chemicals, was one of the most successful efforts to confront a global environmental problem in the modern era. It attained bipartisan support in Congress before the treaty was signed by President Reagan.
In 2016, an amendment to the Montreal Protocol was agreed to at a conference in Kigali, Rwanda, by 170 countries, including the United States. This new Kigali Amendment is intended to phase out hydrofluorocarbons (HFCs) over the next three decades. HFCs have minimal impact on ozone depletion but many studies have since shown that they have a high impact on greenhouse gas concentrations.
Debate over adoption includes questions about the approval process, its effectiveness in reducing both ozone depletion and greenhouse gas concentrations, the costs of implementation, and whether additional changes to the Clean Air Act are needed for implementing the treaty amendment in the United States.
On Monday, February 5th, Hudson Institute hosted a half-day symposium to discuss the future of the Kigali Amendment. Forbes magazine Editor-in-Chief Steve Forbes delivered keynote remarks, and two separate panels will discuss the Kigali Amendment and its impact on the U.S. regulatory process.
To view Mr. Michaels' slides, click here.
Please join Hudson Institute for a fireside chat with Senior Fellow and Keystone Defense Initiative Director Rebeccah Heinrichs and John Spencer, chair of Urban Warfare Studies at the Modern War Institute at West Point and co-director of the Urban Warfare Project.
Join Hudson Institute and the Ben Franklin Fellowship for a two-panel discussion examining US policy as it confronts the crisis of terror in Nigeria.
Join Hudson Institute's Center for the Economics of the Internet for a keynote address given by Tricia Paoletta on the Trump administration's progress in managing and reallocating the electromagnetic radio frequency spectrum from the federal domain.
Join Hudson Institute for a discussion with Federal Trade Commission Chairman Andrew Ferguson and Senior Fellow Harold Furchtgott-Roth.
