International News
NEW POLICY REPORT RELEASED : LIFECYCLE REFRIGERANT MANAGEMENT
How minimising leaks and maximising reclaim can avoid up to 91-billion metric tons of CO 2 equivalent emissions .
Today , built into each cooling appliance and insulating foam in nearly every household , building and car across most of the world , there sits a type of fluorinated gas called a hydrochlorofluorocarbon ( HCFC ) and / or a hydrofluorocarbon ( HFC ).
When leaked out into the atmosphere , HCFCs cause depletion of Earth ’ s ozone layer and both HCFCs and HFCs are extremely potent climate warmers . Pound for pound , these chemicals warm the climate several thousands of times as much as carbon dioxide . In total , the US installed base of HCFCs and HFCs alone is equivalent to 3.6 billion CO 2
-equivalent metric tons today , mostly in use as refrigerants . Globally , it is approximately 24 billion .
The primary global environmental policy on fluorocarbons is implementation of the Montreal Protocol , which focuses on gradual reductions in the production , import and use of these gases in the future . To date , however , the policies have not gone to sufficient lengths to prevent emissions , and thus environmental harm from the HCFCs and HFCs of the past , ie , those already out in the world .
A global phasedown of HFCs has recently begun under the Kigali Amendment to the Montreal Protocol . The American Innovation and Manufacturing ( AIM ) Act , enacted by Congress in December 2020 , implements it in the United States .
But barebone implementation of the Kigali Amendment and other Montreal Protocol requirements doesn ’ t go far enough , neither in the United States nor the rest of the world . For example , by 2050 the prescribed HFC reduction schedule will have allowed 3.6-billion CO 2
-equivalent metric tons to be sold into the US market , effectively doubling from today ’ s levels the potential climate harm requiring mitigation .
The HCFCs and HFCs of the past , and the HFCs that have yet to enter the market , must not leak into the atmosphere . If we meet this opportunity to prevent emissions from existing equipment , we ’ ll avert as much warming as two years of President Biden ’ s economy-wide greenhouse gas annual emissions target for 2030 . The numbers are even greater globally , where these transitions are earlier in their processes : 61 billion CO 2 e metric tons by midcentury and 91 by century ’ s end ( cumulatively ). There is a huge opportunity for chemical producers , equipment manufacturers , federal and state policymakers , major corporations , and maintenance professionals to come together to prevent as much of these potent chemicals as possible from making it into the atmosphere . This report makes a first attempt at laying out the starting point for an approach , referred to here as Lifecycle Refrigerant Management ( LRM ).
LRM focuses on avoiding and reducing refrigerant leaks , promoting refrigerant recovery , and increasing reclamation rates to mitigate unnecessary refrigerant use and emissions . The US Environmental Protection Agency ( EPA ) has ample authority under the AIM Act to successfully pursue many aspects of LRM . The recently passed Infrastructure Reduction Act ( IRA ) also provides significant additional funding to implement and operationalise the AIM Act and other opportunities to advance LRM including through green bank programs , heat pump and efficiency incentives and rebates , and more .
Many of the measures described herein should be considered for adoption by EPA as the AIM Act and the IRA are operationalised . EPA cannot do it alone , however . Successful LRM will rely on a variety of stakeholders each playing distinct roles : regulators setting mandates , legislatures and other wellresourced entities offering financial incentives , and industry members adapting their practices in favor of the types of interventions we recommend in this paper . Nor can the US alone collectively meet the 91 billion metric ton opportunity – not even close . Global leadership on LRM is badly needed , and for the US to serve that role , action must start at home .
SIX PILLARS TO THE LRM APPROACH DESCRIBED IN BRIEF
Enhance product stewardship Most LRM best practices – leak repair , refrigerant recovery and proper disposal – must be ultimately carried out by the entity least responsible for introducing those materials into the economy : service professionals .
www . refrigerationandaircon . co . za RACA Journal I February 2023 15