UN award on environment protection for Air India

Sep 20: The national carrier of India, Air India, has been awarded this years’ Environmental Protection Award of United Nation. Air India is engaged in various environmental programmes including conservation of energy and other natural resources and hence the award came as a best recognition for its effort to global environment protection.

United Nations Environmental Programme (UNEP) is constantly engaged in several environmental activities to deal with the adverse climatic change since its foundation in 1972.

Air India has received the Montreal Protocol Public Awareness Award and as the protocol was made to take considerable effort in repairing and recovering world’s stratospheric ozone layer. The Airline authority in its continuous endeavor does engross in various programmes following the guidelines of UNEP’s ozone action.

The protocol is so far one of the successful international agreements signed in the Vienna Convention. Scientists have been conducting research on the effects Ozone depleting chemicals primarily the chlorofluorocarbons (CFC), carbon dioxide and halons on the ozone layer.

CFC and halons are highly hazardous in thinning the ozone layer. As aircrafts primarily used halons for onboard and ground fire protection, it is important for them to consider their use of such chemicals. Generally this chemical is used as a safety measure for fire protection but its emission is more destructive for ozone layer.

It is the vital reason that UNEP in a long term plan did bring all major airlines authority for an agreement of ‘ halon banking’ or ‘halon bank management’ in order to reduce the use ozone-depleting substances.

Air India as one of the major international airlines had participated in the UNEP Ozone Action Programme and is so far successful in limiting the use of chemicals in various fields.