Alternative Substances – a replacement of ODS with zero Ozone Depleting Potential.

Article 5 countries - a developing country that is a Party to the Montreal Protocol, and whose annual consumption of controlled substances is less than 0.3 kg per capita. Such countries are considered to operate under Article 5 of the Montreal Protocol and are thus called ‘Article 5 countries’.

Back conversion - the act of charging with CFC a system designed for and/or using non-CFC.

Bureau - the Environmental Management Bureau.

Chlorofluorocarbons (CFCs) - a family of chemicals that contain chlorine, fluorine and carbon; used as refrigerants, aerosol propellants, cleaning solvents and in the manufacture of foam.

Consumption – the sum of production plus imports minus exports of ODSs. The amount recycled and reused is not defined as production. Since the Philippines does not produce and export ODSs, the country’s consumption is equivalent to imports as measured by ODP weight.

Controlled substance – any chemical that is subject to control measures, such as a phase-out requirement pursuant to the schedule of the Montreal Protocol.

Department - the Department of Environment and Natural Resources.

Essential Uses – ODS usage which are exempted from control measures or phase-out. Exempted use of controlled substances does not count towards a country’s consumption. A global exemption has been granted for laboratory and analytical uses. Countries may request essential use exemptions on behalf of individual enterprises, if the specific ODS is either for health, safety or for functioning of society and no acceptable alternative is available. The Meeting of the Parties decides on such requests on a case-by-case basis.

Flushing - an act of cleaning a contaminated refrigeration/air conditioning system or system with burnt compressor by pumping or blowing gas, medium/solvent through the system then releasing the compounds to the atmosphere or a system in contact with atmosphere.

Hydrochlorofluorocarbons (HCFCs) - a family of hydrogenated chemicals related to CFCs, which contain hydrogen, as well as chlorine, fluorine and carbon. The hydrogen reduces their atmospheric lifetime, making HCFCs less ozone depleting than CFCs, hence, considered as transitional substances.

Importer - any person, natural or juridical, that undertakes the entry of an equipment, substance or product into the country that is intended for direct consumption, warehousing, sale or distribution.

Installation - any permanent mounting or setting-up of system; or transfer of equipment from one location to another, which involve opening the system to the atmosphere e.g. the piping has to be cut and reconnect or involving fixed installation to water piping or electricity.

Montreal Protocol - the Protocol to the Vienna Convention, signed in 1987, which commits Parties to take concrete measures to protect the ozone layer by freezing, reducing or ending production and consumption of controlled substances, as amended.

Ozone - a gas whose molecules contain three atoms of oxygen, and whose presence in the stratosphere constitutes the ozone layer that protects life against harmful radiation. Ozone is toxic to humans, animals and plants at high concentrations, and so is a pollutant when it occurs in the lower atmosphere in smog

Ozone depletion - the process by which stratospheric ozone is destroyed by man-made chemicals, leading to a reduction in its concentration.

Ozone-depleting potential (ODP) - a measure of a substance’s ability to destroy stratospheric ozone, based on its atmospheric lifetime, stability, reactivity and content of elements that can attack ozone, such as chlorine and bromide. All ODPs are based on the reference measure of 1 for CFC-11

Ozone-Depleting Substances (ODS) - any substance which is controlled under the Montreal Protocol and its amendments. ODSs include CFCs, HCFCs, Halons, carbon tetrachloride, methyl chloroform, hydrobromofluorocarbons, bromochloromethane and methyl bromide. ODS have ozone-depleting potentials greater than 0 and can deplete the stratospheric ozone layer.

Ozone Layer – is a thin, fragile shield created as ozone forms and breaks down in the stratosphere. This ozone layer envelopes the entire earth which efficiently and effectively filters and screens most all the harmful ultraviolet (UV) rays like UV-B.

Party - a country that signs and/or ratifies an international legal instrument, indicating that it agrees to be bound by the rules set out therein. Parties to the Montreal Protocol are countries that have signed and ratified the Protocol and its relevant Amendments. Article 4 of the Protocol restricts trade with non-Parties.

Phase out - the ending of all production and consumption of a chemical controlled under the Montreal Protocol.

Reclamation – an act of re-processing the recovered/used refrigerant to a quality/degree or specification almost the same as that of new refrigerant.

Recovery – the removal of a refrigerant in any condition (vapor, liquid or mixed with other substance) from a system and to store it in an external container.

Recycling – the reduction of contaminants in used refrigerants by separating oil, removing condensables and using devices such as filter dryers to reduce moisture, acidity and particulate matter.

R-502 – a blend of refrigerant composed of 51.2% CFC115 and 48.8% HCFC22 commonly used for low temperature refrigeration system.

Servicing – any act of repair, maintenance, testing and trouble shooting of parts, including mechanical and electrical components of an existing CFC-using equipment.

Venting – the practice of intentionally releasing and/or purging of ODS to the atmosphere.