Reduction of HFCs in the USA from 2024
The US Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) recently put forward a proposal to reduce HFCs by the year 2024. According to the document presented by that organisation, the main objective is to lower US production and consumption of fluorinated gases by 40% compared to previous levels.
Aiming for this ambitious target would help the United States conform with the initiatives implemented by other nations to comply with the Montreal protocol, especially regarding the points set out in the Kigali Amendment, which regulates the gradual reduction of these substances.
The EPA’s proposal on the reduction of HFCs
The proposal establishes the method to be used for allocating HFC production and consumption quotas for 2024 and the successive years, which in fact is not dissimilar the procedures previously used when calculating the quotas for 2022-23.
The main difference compared to the previous legislation however, lies in the fact that those quotas were designed to achieve a gradual reduction in HFCs of 10%. The EPA however, now aims to increase that percentage even further, aiming for a reduction of 40% compared to past levels.
In order to facilitate the calculation of the quotas to be reduced, the Agency has also proposed the idea of modifying the methods used to assess the figures for past consumption. This modification involves using an average to be calculated using the three years with the highest production of the substances in question, taking into account the years between 2011 and 2019.
The EPA also sets out in more detail the requirements for registration and accounting for companies, which can serve to protect environmental and financial advantages deriving from the gradual reduction in hydrofluorocarbons.
The objective of -40% HFCs would however only be the first step, as in the proposal supported by the bipartisan legislation known as the AIM Act and promoted by the Biden-Harris administration (which the EPA answers to) the target is to an 85% reduction in the consumption of fluorinated refrigerant gases by 2036.
According to EPA estimates, this action would permit the reduction of greenhouse gas emissions by up to 35 million metric tonnes of carbon dioxide equivalent (MMTCO2e) per year, which equates to the amount of fuel consumed by around 7.5 million petrol cars over 12 months.
The predicted total savings for industry and consumers, deriving mainly from improved energy efficiency and cheaper refrigerants, would reach an estimated 8 billion dollars by the year 2050.
Petitions to reduce HFCs and their illegal trade
The EPA’s revision of HFCs was put together following careful consideration of the numerous petitions sent to companies, industrial associations, environmental and non-governmental organisations, 12 States and the District of Columbia, requesting that the organisation limit the use of certain refrigerant gases in products and equipment in more than 40 industrial sub-sectors.
The measures contained in that proposal are the result of intense debate between the various parties involved and take into account factors such as the availability of alternative substances for equipment cooling, security and their economic and environmental impact.
Another issue being dealt with by the US Agency is the illegal trade in HFCs. In light of an announcement by the Interagency Task Force on Illegal HFC Trade, led by the EPA and the Department of Homeland Security, that it blocked the illegal transportation of HFCs equating to over 889,000 tonnes of carbon dioxide at the US border in the first nine months of last year, new regulations have been introduced which oblige companies to obtain appropriate authorisations before producing or importing hydrofluorocarbons.
Translated by Joanne Beckwith
