US EPA wants refrigerant gases slashed 85 percent in 15 years

Proposed rule will drastically reduce greenhouse gas found in refrigerators and air conditioners.

The United States Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) on Monday proposed a rule to slash the use of a potent greenhouse gas commonly used in refrigerators and air conditioners by 85 percent over the next 15 years. The move to curb hydrofluorocarbons (HFCs) would avoid the equivalent of 900 million tonnes of CO2 emissions over that period. The proposal arises from a law passed by the US Congress in December 2020 that was tucked into an omnibus spending bill which directed the EPA to issue regulations phasing down HFC production and set up an import schedule over the next 15 years.