> The big lesson is that CFC removal has been a massive win for humanity and that kind of categorical and decisive climate action is exactly what we need in the future!
That's one lesson. Another lesson is that when powerful people take such celebrated "decisive" action, less powerful people get trampled underfoot, in this case through potentially crippling medical costs.
> This was not a mistake. It was a humanity saving decision.
The phasing out of CFCs was not a mistake. The way it was implemented, however, contained many mistakes, some of which have negatively impacted many lives, as illustrated by the top-level comment.
The lesson has nothing to do with the CFC removal.
The problem isn't that CFC got removed. The problem is that a new patent got granted for an insignificant change. Why that change happened in the first place doesn't matter.
No, the CFCs in medical inhalers were of insignificant quantity and should not have been changed. The new propellants are equal-to-slightly-inferior, in my experience.
Had we done nothing, CFCs from inhalers would be something like 1/3rd of total emissions right now (simply because of the drop). But it's far worse. The world population is much higher now, and healthcare is much more accessible around the world. India, China, the Philippines, many countries with hundreds of millions of people can now prescribe them; they were never included in any 1991 numbers because their healthcare systems weren't that well developed back then. If you factor all of those people in, the majority of CFCs would be emitted by inhalers.
CFCs and Inhalers are a significant problem. No one deserves to get skin cancer because of CFCs.
You should blame manufacturers and the insane patent system, not the scientists working hard to keep the planet from dying.
The interesting thing is that most of the world kept the CFCs inhalers for many years. Immediately ceasing production so that people are thrown under the bus was a US thing.
I really think we are looking at a case of "corruption harms people" and not one of "unintended side effects should be looked upon".
That's one lesson. Another lesson is that when powerful people take such celebrated "decisive" action, less powerful people get trampled underfoot, in this case through potentially crippling medical costs.
> This was not a mistake. It was a humanity saving decision.
The phasing out of CFCs was not a mistake. The way it was implemented, however, contained many mistakes, some of which have negatively impacted many lives, as illustrated by the top-level comment.