Feb. 19, 2014: EPA Proposes Transition Plan to Low-GWP Alternative Refrigerants
EPA Announced It Is Planning Two Separate Proposed Rulemakings
WASHINGTON — The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) held a public meeting to inform stakeholders of its proposed plan for a transition to “climate-friendly alternatives” to replace high-global warming potential (GWP) refrigerants. This was in response to President Obama’s Climate Action Plan, which calls on the agency to use its authority under the Significant New Alternatives Policy (SNAP) program to identify and approve alternative refrigerants while prohibiting some uses of the most harmful chemicals. The Air-Conditioning, Heating, and Refrigeration Institute (AHRI) reports that EPA announced that it was planning two separate proposed rulemakings.
The first rule will be proposed in the spring and will expand the list of low-GWP alternative refrigerants for air conditioning and refrigeration to include ethane, isobutane, propane, R-441A, and R-32 for selected applications. Since these refrigerants are flammable, the EPA is planning to propose appropriate use conditions that adopt safety standards.