Refrigeration and air conditioning companies in Vanuatu will need to comply with more stringent regulations to protect the environment likely to be in place by the end of this year.
The Ozone Layer Protection Bill is before parliament and if passed, it will restrict the importation and sales of ozone depleting refrigerant gases.
The National Ozone Officer at the Ministry of Environment, Anna Bule, says once the legislation is passed it will have a big impact on the industry.
"We're going to be requiring them to pay a fee to import ODS substances and in order to renew their licenses, they have to submit data. So they have to be pretty transparent about what they're going to be importing in, so that we can report back to the United Nations."
The new law has been drafted as part of the government's response to a United Nations investigation which found Vanuatu was not complying with its environmental obligations under the Montreal protrocol.
