Decision VII/12: Control measures for Parties not operating under Article 5 concerning halons and other agents used for fire-suppression and explosion-inertion purposes

The Seventh Meeting of the Parties decided in Dec. VII/12:

1. To recommend that all Parties not operating under Article 5 should endeavour, on a voluntary basis, to limit the emissions of halon to a minimum by:
1. Accepting as critical those applications meeting the essential-use criteria as defined in decision IV/25, paragraph 1 (a);
2. Limiting the use of halons in new installations to critical applications;
3. Accepting that existing installations for critical applications may continue to use halon in the future;
4. Considering the decommissioning of halon systems in existing installations, which are not critical applications, as quickly as technically and economically feasible;
5. Ensuring that halons are effectively recovered;
6. Preventing, whenever feasible, the use of halon in equipment testing and for training of personnel;
7. Evaluating and taking into account only those substitutes and replacements of halon, for which no other more environmentally suitable ones are available;
8. Promoting the environmentally safe destruction of halons, when they are not needed in halon banks (existing or to be created);
2. To request the Technology and Economic Assessment Panel and its Halons Technical Options Committee to prepare a report to the Eighth Meeting of the Parties to provide guidance on the above.