Hong Kong Customs displays 82.5kg of rhino horns from South Africa and destined for Malaysia. Photo: ISD

Climate

Preventing runaway climate change and warming of more than 1.5°C requires accelerating emission reductions of potent short-lived climate pollutants, such as hydrofluorocarbons (HFCs) and other fluorinated chemicals. EIA’s Climate Campaign seeks to eliminate emissions of HFCs and other potent greenhouse gases used primarily in cooling and heating.  

Climate Campaign Goals

Currently the world is not on track to limit warming to less than 1.5°C above pre-industrial levels in order to avoid tipping points leading to catastrophic climate change. We must seize the opportunity to rid the world of fluorinated super pollutants to keep this goal within reach. 

To maximize the immediate climate benefits that can be achieved by eliminating super-pollutant HFCs, we seek to: 

  • Ensure robust implementation and enforcement of the Kigali Amendment to avoid up to 0.4°C by the end of this century
  • Accelerate the HFC phase down schedule under the Montreal Protocol and maximize energy efficiency co-benefits
  • Prevent lifecycle emissions of all existing HFCs and other fluorinated refrigerants, mitigating up to an additional 100Gt CO2e in direct emissions by 2100
  • Unlock U.S. leadership through innovative policy solutions and comprehensive implementation of the American Innovation and Manufacturing (AIM) Act

Climate Campaign Impact

  • EIA advocacy at the Montreal Protocol over many years contributed to finalizing a global HFC phasedown agreement under the Kigali Amendment, which is expected to mitigate 80 billion tonnes CO2e in emissions by 2050, avoiding up to 0.5°C warming by the end of the century. We continue our work to ensure successful implementation, and future acceleration of this global effort to achieve rapid climate benefits. 
  • Our 2018 investigation identified widespread illegal use of CFC-11 in China’s foam sector as a major source of an unexplained increase in emissions of the banned substance. The report spurred immediate enforcement action, leading to a subsequent rapid decline in emissions the following year in a major win for global climate and ozone protection. 
  • EIA created the first interactive grassroots platform for corporate accountability on refrigerants, at www.climatefriendlysupermarkets.org. Hundreds of citizen activists have engaged with the platform by submitting data to our map and signing various petitions urging supermarkets to transition to HFC-free technologies and prevent refrigerant leaks.

Related Resources

Report

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