Mrs VALE (10:18 AM) —The purpose of this legislation, the Ozone Protection Amendment Bill 1998 [1999] , is the better protection of the ozone layer which exists high in the stratosphere above the earth and which appears to have been declining since the 1960s. The legislation will amend the Ozone Protection Act 1989. Essentially, it will reflect recent developments in international agreements and allow Australia to better fulfil our obligations as one of the parties. The international legal framework, which is concerned with ozone depletion, is governed by the Vienna Convention for the Protection of the Ozone Layer and the Montreal Protocol on Substances that Deplete the Ozone Layer—the latter being referred to as the Montreal protocol.

The depletion of the ozone layer has been of considerable concern around the world. Over 150 countries are signatories to the Montreal protocol by which national governments have agreed to phase out ozone depleting substances. I am pleased to inform this House that Australia continues to lead the world in phasing out these substances and has been able to achieve a record of success ahead of its timetable under the protocol. With the support of industry, government departments and all levels of the Australian community, our government has shown determination and sound cooperative effort in managing the commitments under the protocol.

I would like to quote from Investing in our natural and cultural heritage: the Commonwealth's environment expenditure 1999-2000, a statement by Senator Robert Hill, Minister for the Environment and Heritage, dated 11 May 1999. It is one of the Commonwealth environment expenditure papers, which covers the protection of the ozone layer and what Australia is actually doing. It says:

The Government supports the international community's efforts to halt damage to the earth's protective ozone layer. Australia has been an influential participant at Montreal Protocol meetings and is a leader in attempts to secure a phase out of all significant ozone depleting substances.

The Government has:

. won recognition from the United Nations Environment Programme as a world leader in ozone protection;

. supported the international phase out by 2005 of methyl bromide, a significant ozone depleting substance used by the agricultural and horticultural sectors, and developed a strategy for its phase-out in Australia; and

. brought the increase of halon 1202 to the world's attention and called for international action at the Working Group to the Montreal protocol in July 1998.

The Government will continue to support international efforts to protect the earth's ozone layer including:

. encouraging countries to meet their commitment to phase-out all non-essential ozone depleting substances;

. promoting the phase-out of non-essential uses of halon by encouraging countries to develop national or regional halon management strategies based on Australia's mandatory programme;

. progressing the phase-out of CFC use in metered dose inhalers; and

. implementing the phase-out of methyl bromide by developing alternate broad spectrum fumigants.

So Australia is taking its lead as far as the reduction of ozone depleting substances on the world stage. Not all nations are having the success of Australia. Unfortunately, Russia at this stage is having some difficulty in meeting its treaty obligations. Environmental notes for parliamentarians is a service of the United Nations Environment Program, which reports:

The Russian Federation and seven of the Independent States of the Former Soviet Union have failed to comply with obligations under the Montreal Protocol on Substances that Deplete the Ozone Layer. It is thought that the ongoing economic crises also makes it unlikely that they will be able to comply in the near future.

The UN says that Russia has made `significant progress' in recent years, and CFC production has continued to drop, but levels are still far from the zero tolerance mandated by their treaty status.

So this is where Australia is leading the way and it is a record of which all our Australian citizens can be justly proud. The focus of this legislation is to control the import, export and/or manufacture of ozone depleting substances. These substances are defined as `scheduled substances' under the act and activities involving the import, export or manufacture are controlled by the requirement of licences.

Certain chemicals used by industrial nations actually damage the ozone layer. The ozone layer is the protective atmospheric coating that forms over the earth's crust. These gases and substances include chlorofluorocarbons, otherwise known as CFCs, halons, metal chloroform, carbon tetrachloride and hydrochlorofluorocarbons, known as HCFCs, and methyl bromide. These chemicals have many uses in our communities. They are used in refrigerators, fire extinguishers and airconditioners. They are used in dry cleaning, as solvents for cleaning electronic equipment, and as agricultural fumigants.

These amendments will require that separate licences be provided for the manufacturing, importing and/or exporting activities of ozone depleting substances and will impose conditions upon licences relating to these activities. This bill will also update the schedules under the act to reflect changes in international agreements and will define the exemption for refrigerated transport containers which contain ozone depleting substances so that only their import, not their manufacture, is permitted in Australia.

There is often some confusion between the phenomena of the depletion of the ozone layer and that of the greenhouse effect and I think it would be worth while to take some time to explain the differences. The existence of the ozone layer was discovered in the 1880s. It is found high in the stratosphere, about 15 to 30 kilometres above the earth's surface. By the 1930s, scientists came to understand how the ozone layer was formed and noted its chemical mechanisms whereby it was maintained. I am grateful for the fact sheets produced by Environment Australia which give a very comprehensive explanation on its existence. Its significant feature is that the ozone layer protects life on earth by absorbing ultraviolet radiation from the sun. UV radiation is considered to be the cause of skin cancers, genetic damage and immune system suppression in living organisms and reduced agricultural productivity in agricultural crops and the food chain.

The damage to the ozone layer is caused by a chemical reaction. Radiation from the sun passes through the ozone layer, which absorbs most of the harmful ultraviolet light. The activities of our industrial world release gases which damage the ozone layer. The released CFCs and halons rise into the upper atmosphere, where under strong ultraviolet light they break down to destroy ozone molecules. This causes a thinning of the ozone layer, which causes more ultraviolet light to reach the surface of the earth. This then causes health problems, reduced plant growth and a reduction in fisheries. Of course, it is not news that we in Australia have the highest level of skin cancer in the world, caused by our overexposure to UV radiation—the direct effect of the thinning of the ozone layer.

Our scientists tell us that the ozone is thinning over most of the planet. Australia has recorded a depletion of between five and nine per cent since the 1960s. The problem is that, as scientific research shows, a one per cent decrease in stratospheric ozone will increase the earth's radiation and skin damage by one to two per cent. This clearly is alarming in our country, where the temperate climate and sunny weather conditions induce the majority of our population to enjoy outdoor pursuits all year round. Besides the overall thinning of the ozone layer, of increasing concern is a more intense thinning over Antarctica which occurs each spring, when an ozone hole appears to form over that region.

The phenomenon known as the enhanced greenhouse effect is also caused by pollution of the earth's atmosphere. A similar range of gases contributes to both phenomena, but they affect different levels of the earth's atmosphere in different ways. Enhanced greenhouse effect is found in the lower atmosphere, known as the troposphere, when a build-up of gases, especially carbon dioxide, is present. In this lower level of the atmosphere about the planet, these gases trap radiation and warm the earth. The result is a photochemical smog which itself is a minor contributor to the enhanced greenhouse effect.

The burning of fossil fuels and other processes add excessive carbon dioxide and other gases to the troposphere, preventing infra-red radiation from escaping into space. This causes the earth's surface temperature to increase, thereby causing the atmosphere to warm up and have an effect on weather and climate.

In an effort to control the damage, the manufacture and the import and/or export of ozone depleting substances have been controlled in Australia since 1989, and have been banned here far ahead of our agreement under the Montreal protocol. The protocol does allow for a very confined range of activities for specified essential services until suitable alternatives are found. At this point in time, these essential uses are medical aerosols, such as asthma puffers and certain laboratory tests.

The use of yellow fire extinguishers was popular a decade or two ago, but these units contain halon, which is considered to be the most potent of the ozone depleting substances. The use or possession of these yellow fire extinguishers without approval has been declared illegal from 31 December 1995, and attracts a fine in all Australian states and territories. The business world is responding by manufacturing ozone friendly alternatives to the use of ozone depleting substances in domestic and commercial refrigeration and airconditioning.

I am pleased to inform this House that Australia leads the world in negotiating all control measures on ozone depleting substances and has actively assisted developing nations in meeting their commitments under the Montreal protocol. It is acknowledged that a financial mechanism was required to support the transfer of ozone friendly technology to developing nations, and in 1991 a multilateral fund was established under the auspices of the protocol.

Australia is committed to the objectives of the Montreal protocol and is active in the multilateral fund in assisting developing nations in their efforts to protect the ozone layer. We are one of the 14 members of the executive committee which manages the fund and we also contribute through AusAID. I am pleased to say that our commitment extends to being an active partner in bilateral projects in developing countries, where Australian skills and technology contribute to local ozone protection endeavours.

In January this year, Greenpeace reported in its Olympic report that in December 1998 the World Meteorological Organisation had confirmed that an ozone hole had formed over the Southern Hemisphere between September and November. The hole itself was three times larger than Australia. The report stated also that the ozone layer increased about 25 per cent from last season, and in Sydney radiation levels rose by about seven per cent as a direct result of this ozone depletion. This publication also reported a link between ozone depletion and global warming, which initially were thought to be two independent phenomena. It is thought that the effect of global warming is inhibiting the repair of the damage to the ozone layer and causing a 20-year delay in its recovery.

Our government is concerned about the negative effects of increased ultraviolet light upon the earth and the population of Australia. Clear and precise scientific evidence reveals that such overexposure will cause serious effects on human health. These include sunburn, skin cancers, eye damage and the suppression of the human immune system. There is also an adverse effect on plant growth, photosynthesis and disease resistance from overexposure and adverse effects on aquatic ecosystems which may be more significant than originally thought.

For those who are deeply interested in the protection of the natural environment, this legislation will be welcome. Our government is to be commended for the leadership role it plays on the world stage in relation to the regulation of ozone depleting substances and the practical encouragement it offers to developing nations. Ultimately, we will all profit from the positive commitment from the coalition government to protect the ozone layer. I commend this legislation to the House.