EU proposes tighter rules on ozone depleters The European Commission proposed stricter deadlines in July that go far beyond the European Union's (EU's) international commitments for phasing out ozonedepleting substances used as fumigants in industry and agriculture. The proposed new regulations would accelerate the phaseout period specified in the U.N. Montreal Protocol on Substances that Deplete the Ozone Layer for methyl bromide and hydrochlorofluorocarbons (HCFCs). According to the Commission, the proposal "reinforces European leadership in this vital of vironmental protection " but manufacturers of the two chemicals criticized the plan saying
that jobs would be lost to countries with weaker rules. Methyl bromide, mosdy used as a pesticide in the cultivation of high-value agricultural produce such as strawberries and tomatoes, would be banned in the EU by 2001, rather than 2005 as specified in the Montreal Protocol. Bent Jensen of the European Chemical Industry Council noted that this proposal would particularly affect tomato growers in Spain and Italy, who use the chemical for soil fumigation. No one single chemical is as versatile has as many applications and is as effective as methyl bromide The growers' situation will hp wor
