Local police in Central China's Henan province arrested three suspects regarding the illegal production of an ozone-depleting chemical, with two still on the run.

In August, the Ministry of Ecology and Environment and the local environmental protection department seized a secrete of illegally produced CFC-11, a chlorofluorocarbon often used as a refrigerant, in Mengzhou, Henan province.

The site was hidden in a courtyard of a mechanical factory. The CFC-11 production facility was built without any approval. The ministry seized 29.9 tons of illegally produced CFC-11 and about 30 tons of carbon tetrachloride raw materials on the spot.

The raw materials and products have been transferred to a different storage facility and will be disposed of by qualified personnel. The illegal facility was dismantled according to law.

The Ministry of Ecology and Environment launched a nationwide campaign against illegal use and production of ozone-depleting substances in July.