The Directorate of Climate Change was organized an awareness Training and Consultation Meeting on Illegal Refrigerant Trade for Customs, Customs Enforcement and Customs Inspection Officers, with the support of the United Nations Industrial Development Organization (UNIDO) in cooperation with the Ministry of Commerce, General Directorate of Customs and the General Directorate of Customs Enforcement. The meeting held in Istanbul on February 27, 2024 was attended by specialized customs directorates authorized to carry out the procedures for the introduction of Ozone Layer Depleting Substances and Fluorinated Greenhouse Gases into Free Circulation, as well as customs directorates where the export of these goods is intense.
The meeting, which aims to build capacity on illegal refrigerant trade, was held after the opening speeches of Mr. Volkan Polat, Head of the Department of Monitoring of Greenhouse Gas Emissions, and Süleyman Yılmaz, UNIDO Country Representative and Director of the Centre for Regional Cooperation in Türkiye, followed by the experts of the Directorate on the Legislation on Fluorinated Greenhouse Gases and our country's studies, the Hydrofluorocarbon Control Certificate Process and Suspicions of Illegal Refrigerant Trade. In the presentations, relevant legislation, especially the international importance of illegal refrigerant trade, illegal trade routes and combat methods were highlighted.
The World Customs Organization (WCO) and the Environmental Investigation Agency (EIA) also contributed to the meeting with their online presentations and provided valuable information to the participants about the Worldwide Illegal Refrigerant Trade and examples of good practice in customs.
During the meeting, illegal refrigerant trade cases encountered during import and export, especially notifications from our neighboring countries and international reports on illegal trade involving our country were discussed. As a result of extensive consultations with participants of the Directorate, the General Directorate of Customs, General Directorate of Customs Enforcement and Customs Directorates, a road map was drawn that includes important steps in the fight against illegal refrigerant trade.
