Montreal Protocol CFC phaseout (1987-2010)
196 countries agreed in Montreal to phase out chlorofluorocarbons, which destroyed atmospheric ozone. Developed countries banned new CFC production by 1996. The full phaseout for service refrigerants finished in 2010.
Refrigerant manufacturers shifted production first to HCFCs, then to HFCs over two decades. The ozone hole stopped growing.
The HFC replacements turned out to be powerful greenhouse gases. The Kigali Amendment added HFCs to Montreal in 2016, setting up the current phasedown.
Today's AIM Act phasedown is the third major refrigerant transition in 40 years. Each one has produced the same fight between regulators and industry over stranded equipment and installation cutoffs.
