EPA rejects request to delay refrigerants ban
An HVAC manufacturers group said it is disappointed in the Environmental Protection Agency’s decision to stay with a January 2024 effective date for banning certain hydrofluorocarbon refrigerants used in liquid chillers.
In a letter signed by the Air-Conditioning, Heating and Refrigeration Institute, and the National Resources Defense Council, the groups had requested a one-year delay.
AHRI said the postponement would have ensured safe alternatives and kept product development schedules on track.
"We are extremely disappointed that the EPA failed to take into account the impact on industry and consumers in making this decision," said AHRI President and CEO Stephen Yurek. "We are very concerned that this decision will have an adverse effect on our industry and the 1.2 million Americans we employ," he added, noting that "making compliance a year sooner has a negligible benefit for the environment, but it does create an economic burden for the industry that provides comfort cooling and heating, commercial refrigeration technologies, and hot water for every American."
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