EPA Rules Further Restrict Use of Ozone-Depleting Pollutants in Air-conditioning and Refrigeration Equipment
The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency has announced two final rules that will further cut ozone-depleting pollutants. The rules reduce the availability and use of hydrochlorofluorocarbons (HCFCs), which are primarily used as refrigerants and harm the ozone layer.
The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency has announced two final
rules that will further cut ozone-depleting pollutants. The rules reduce the availability and use of hydrochlorofluorocarbons (HCFCs), which are primarily used as refrigerants and harm the ozone layer.
A diminished ozone layer allows more radiation to reach the Earth’s surface, leading to serious health effects, such as skin cancer, cataracts, and weakened immune systems.
The 2010 HCFC Allocation Rule prohibits the use of specific HCFCs to manufacture new air-conditioning and refrigeration equipment beginning in 2010, while allowing limited HCFC use to service existing equipment. HFCFs affected include HCFC-22, HCFC-142b, HCFC-123, HCFC-124, HCFC-225ca, and HCFC-225cb.
The Pre-Charged Appliances Rule prohibits the sale, distribution, and import of air-conditioning and refrigeration appliances and their components containing HCFC-22, HCFC-142b, or blends containing one or both of these substances that are manufactured or imported after January 1, 2010. The rule affects the sale and distribution of products that are charged with HCFC-22 or HCFC-142b before entering the United States.
These rules advance U.S. compliance under the Clean Air Act and the Montreal Protocol on Substances that Deplete the Ozone Layer.
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