As Nigeria joins the rest of the world to mark the 2022 World Ozone Day, the Federal Government has threatened to ban all appliances that are not ozone-friendly, in accordance with the Montreal Protocol Agreement by Jan. 1, 2023. These appliances include refrigerators, air conditioners, generators, water dispensers, photocopiers, among others.
Ozone is a gas that is made of three oxygen atoms, O3. Depending on where the ozone layer is, it can either harm life or protect life on Earth.  Christian Friedrich Schönbein noticed pungent odour and recognized it as the smell often following a bolt of lightning. In 1839, he succeeded in isolating the gaseous chemical and named it "ozone", from a Greek word meaning "to smell". For this reason, he is generally credited with the discovery of ozone, although he built on the discovery made by Dutch chemist, Martinus van Marum in1785.
Most of the Ozone stays within the stratosphere, whereby it acts as a shield, protecting the surface of the Earth from the harmful ultraviolet radiation of the sun. If this shield was to weaken, we would all be more susceptible to impaired immune systems, cataracts, and skin cancer.
Mr Oladipo Supo, Chairman of the Environment Unit of United Nations Development Programme (UNDP), stated this, while giving out reasons for the move to ban some electronic gadgets and other substances, in a chat with newsmen in Abuja. Supo also said that Nigeria had delayed in implementing the agreement because it had not been able to get alternatives.
“We started with Hydrochlorofluorocarbons (HCFCs) and now we will replace them with hydrofluorocarbons (HFCs) which is where we are today. Under the Montreal Protocol Agreement, the idea is that some of these ozone-depleting substances are actually eliminated from use. Nigeria has committed itself because it is part of the signatory. We are looking at Jan. 1, 2023, when some of these substances will not be allowed into the country anymore.”
“In the refrigerating sector, we only have technicians. The people that actually use them are technicians on the street. You remember sometimes ago; some air conditioners blew up in Ogun. It was because of all these contaminated things and recycled ACs that are not supposed to be in circulation,” he said.
Supo said that the Federal Ministry of Environment was trying to ensure that the alternatives were available before the year 2023 when the banning of the items would commence. According to him, “we cannot ban something when the alternative is not yet available.”
Minister of Environment, Mohammed Abdullahi, blamed some developing countries who use refrigerants with high Ozone-depleting potential such as hydro-chlorofluorocarbons. According to him, emissions are projected to amount to approximately 8.97 gigatons of carbon dioxide equivalent by 2050 and contribute to global warming and climate change.
The minister, who was represented by Mr Charles Ikedea, the Director, Pollution Control of the ministry, said that the emissions were both direct and indirect.
“Direct emissions are refrigerants-related emissions from refrigeration and air conditioning equipment during installation, maintenance, repair and servicing. Indirect emissions are energy consumption of appliances-related emissions due to huge electricity consumption of refrigeration and air conditioning equipment,” he said.
He further advised Nigerians to keep their environment clean and healthy, adding that such would promote the development of the country.
Meanwhile, the United Nations has chosen ‘Montreal Protocol@35: Global Cooperation Protecting Life on Earth’ as the theme for this year’s celebration.
The theme recognizes the wider impact the Montreal Protocol has on climate change and the need to act in collaboration, forge partnerships and develop global cooperation to address climate challenges and protect life on earth for future generations.
Humans have only just begun to understand the dangers chemical pollution poses to the environment, as it took scientists 35 years to discover that the concentration of the Ozone layer has fallen. 
The principal aim of the Montreal Protocol is to protect the Ozone layer by taking measures to control total global production and consumption of substances that deplete it, with the ultimate objective of their elimination, on the basis of developments in scientific knowledge and technological information. It is structured around several groups of Ozone-depleting substances. The groups of chemicals are classified according to the chemical family and are listed in annexes to the Montreal Protocol text.
Scientists have noticed the first indications of possible recovery in the Antarctic ozone layer. By 2070, the hole in the Ozone layer is expected to be smaller than it was in 1980, as CFCs (chlorofluorocarbons) in the upper atmosphere are steadily decreasing.
Historically, on December 19, 1994, the United Nations General Assembly proclaimed September 16 as the International Day for the Preservation of the Ozone Layer, commemorating the date, in 1987, on which the Montreal Protocol on Substances that deplete the Ozone layer was signed.
On September 16, 1987, the United Nations and 45 other countries signed the Montreal Protocol, on substances that deplete the Ozone layer. Every year, this day is celebrated as the International Day for the Preservation of the Ozone layer. The purpose of the Montreal Protocol is to protect the Ozone layer by reducing the production of substances that are supposed to be responsible for Ozone layer depletion.