Economic Coordination Committee bans ozone-harming materials
The Economic Coordination Committee (ECC) of the cabinet decided on Monday to immediately ban ozone-depleting insulation and foaming materials — polyol blended with hydrochlorofluorocarbons (HCFCs) — due to climate concerns. The committee also approved supplementary grants totalling Rs10 billion. The meeting of the ECC, presided over by Finance Minister Muhammad Aurangzeb, also repeated its Aug 15 15, 2024, decision that approved the grant of industry status to the warehousing and logistics sector. The meeting did not allow continuation of the PM’s subsidy scheme for Utility Stores Corporation. The finance minister expressed displeasure when the summary on warehousing and logistics sector was brought up and showed concern over the non-implementation of the ECC’s previous decision even after a passage of almost five months. “The ECC reiterated its previous decision made on Aug 15, 2024, whereby the summary containing proposal of declaring warehousing as industry was approved,” an official statement said.