US asserts HFCs as key area of action against climate change
[ added 3 June, 2010 ]
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In its first major Climate Action Report to the United Nations, the US projects that national greenhouse gases will grow by 4% by 2020. A large portion of the growth is driven by HFCs, which are projected to more than double. Action to tap emissions of HFCs - among the most potent greenhouse gases - will be vital if the US is to achieve an emission reduction rather than an increase.
From 2005 to 2020, total greenhouse gas emissions in the baseline projection are projected to rise by 4%. Emissions of CO2 are estimated to increase by 1.5% between 2005 and 2020, while over the same period, emissions of hydrofluorocarbons (HFCs) are estimated to increase by more than 140%: from 116 Tg CO2 Eq. to 279 Tg CO2 Eq. Growth of HFCs is anticipated to continue well beyond 2020 if left unconstrained.
The 2010 U.S. Climate Action Report states that the increasing demand for refrigeration and air conditioning and the use of HFCs as alternatives for ozone-depleting substances that are phased out under the Montreal Protocol are the main reasons for the increase in HFC emissions.
HFCs limitation key for emissions reduction
According to the report, additional mitigation measures, such as those that would be implemented under the American Clean Energy and Security Act of 2009, will allow the United States to reach a GHG reduction goal of 17% by 2020.
Additional measures such as limiting HFC emissions are key in reaching the greenhouse gases reduction goal. Indeed, last month the US submitted a proposal, to be discussed by the parties to the Montreal Protocol later in 2010, whereby HFCs would be subject to consumption and production constraints.
The report also lists several initiatives in the US targeted at tapping HFC emissions, such as the ‘GreenChill Advanced Refrigeration Partnership’ promoting advanced technologies and practices that reduce supermarkets’ impact on the ozone layer and climate system. Several of the GreenChill supermarkets have for example deployed advanced refrigeration systems that do not use climate warming refrigerant gas HFC but rather natural refrigerant CO2.
Upcoming mandatory reporting of HFCs in the US
In 2009, EPA issued the Mandatory Reporting of Greenhouse Gas Emissions Final Rule, which requires reporting of GHG emissions from large U.S. sources, and is intended to collect accurate and timely emissions data to inform future policy decisions.
Subsequently, in March 2010 the US Environmental Protection Agency prosposed to also include HFCs in the mandatory reporting from facilities that emit 25,000 metric tons or more of carbon dioxide equivalent per year.
BeyondHFCs welcomes the US report and the formal recognition of the urngency of tapping HFC emissions as part of effort to combat climate change.
Links
U.S. Climate Action Report 2010
