With global stock of household air conditioners (ACs) expected to triple by 2050, continued use of HFCs in ACs is fueling the climate crisis. The International Electrotechnical Commission (IEC) is considering an updated safety standard IEC 60335-2-40, which covers household ACs, heat pumps and dehumidifiers. The proposed updated safety requirements will enable safe, energy efficient […]
This report outlines the immediate need to act upon a 100 billion ton climate opportunity. Current climate pledges and action are insufficient, by a wide margin, to address the worsening climate crisis and meet the global target of containing warming below 1.5 °C. “Banks” of fluorinated greenhouse gases, which consist of ozone depleting substances (ODS) […]
Preventing emissions of fluorinated refrigerants such as HFCs from “F-gas banks” is the single biggest near-term strategy to reduce greenhouse gases. The IPCC special report on limiting global warming to within 1.5˚C also underlined need for faster and deeper HFC emission reductions beyond those anticipated under full implementation of the Kigali Amendment to the Montreal […]
Just six months after scientists revealed unexpected and high emissions of CFC-11 and EIA investigations promptly provided evidence of illegal use of CFC-11 in China’s polyurethane (PU) foam insulation sector, much has been done to address this enormous environmental crime. China has responded with an unprecedented nationwide enforcement action and has shut down at least one […]
In October 2016, the Parties to the Montreal Protocol adopted the Kigali Amendment on hydrofluorocarbons (HFCs), which commits the world’s nations to significantly reduce consumption and production of HFCs. The Amendment could avoid emissions of well over 70 billion tonnes of carbon dioxide equivalent by 2050, which marks an historic achievement and brings significant impetus […]
As Parties to Montreal Protocol negotiate a global agreement for an HFC phase-down this year, several safety standards and building codes are threatening to limit the climate ambition and effectiveness of this agreement by blocking the uptake of low global warming potential (GWP), energy efficient alternatives to hydrofluorocarbon (HFC)-based cooling around the world. This briefing […]