Author: Brad Kivlan

EPA Proposes Revisions to Section 608 Refrigerant Management Regulations

On September 18, 2018, Acting EPA Administrator Andrew Wheeler signed the proposed rule, “Protection of Stratospheric Ozone: Revisions to the Refrigerant Management Program’s Extension to Substitutes”. This action proposes to revisit the Agency’s recent approach to regulating appliances containing substitute refrigerants such as hydrofluorocarbons (HFCs) by proposing to rescind the November 18, 2016 extension of the leak repair provisions to appliances using substitute refrigerants. This proposal also requests public comment on rescinding other provisions that were extended to substitute refrigerants, namely HFC’s. This proposal would not affect the requirements for ozone-depleting refrigerants such as CFC’s or HCFC’s.  If finalized as proposed, this action would rescind the leak repair and maintenance requirements at 40 CFR 82.157 for substitute refrigerants and would go back to applying only to ozone-depleting substances.

 What the proposed rule would do

The EPA’s new proposed rule would rescind the following requirements for appliances with 50 or more pounds of HFCs:

  • conduct leak rate calculations when refrigerant is added to an appliance,
  • repair an appliance that leaks above a threshold leak rate,
  • conduct verification tests on repairs,
  • conduct periodic leak inspections on appliances that exceed the threshold leak rate,
  • report to EPA on chronically leaking appliances,
  • retrofit or retire appliances that are not repaired, and
  • maintain related records.

The EPA, through this proposed rule, is requesting public comment regarding further action to rescind other provisions that were extended to HFC’s, including the following:

  • Anyone purchasing refrigerant for use in an appliance or handling substitute refrigerants (e.g., air-conditioning and refrigeration service contractors and technicians) must be a Section 608-certified technician,
  • Anyone removing refrigerant from a refrigeration or air-conditioning appliance must evacuate substitute refrigerant to certain level using certified refrigerant recovery equipment before servicing or disposing of the appliance,
  • The final disposer (e.g., scrap recycler, landfill) of small appliances, like refrigerators and window air conditioners, must ensure and document that substituted refrigerant is recovered before final disposal, and
  • All used refrigerant must be reclaimed to industry purity standards before it can be sold to another appliance owner.

This proposed rule will have a 45-day public comment period. To view the public docket in the Federal Register, visit www.regulations.gov and search for docket number EPA-HQ-OAR-2017-0629.

A Refresher: 2016 Rule Summary

On November 18th, 2016, the EPA issued a final rule updating its refrigerant management regulations. While the regulation took effect on January 1st, 2017, some provisions had compliance dates of January 1st, 2018, and January 1st, 2019. Among other things, that rule extended the refrigerant management requirements to common substitutes like hydrofluorocarbons (HFCs). The 2016 rule and the compliance dates currently remain in effect.

The 2016 rule made the following changes to the existing requirements under Section 608:

1.) Extended the requirements of the Refrigerant Management Program to cover substitute refrigerants, such as HFCs. Note that EPA has previously exempted some substitutes from the Section 608 venting prohibition through previous rules. Such substitutes are also exempt from the requirements of this rule. This fact sheet describes the requirements of the Section 608 Refrigerant Management Program.

2.) Lowered the leak rate thresholds that trigger the duty to repair refrigeration and air-conditioning equipment containing 50 or more pounds of refrigerant.

  • Lowered from 35% to 30% for industrial process refrigeration (IPR)
  • Lowered from 35% to 20% for commercial refrigeration equipment
  • Lowered from 15% to 10% for comfort cooling equipment

3.) Required quarterly/annual leak inspections or continuous monitoring devices for refrigeration and air-conditioning equipment that have exceeded the threshold leak rate.

4.) Required owners/operators to submit reports to EPA if systems containing 50 or more pounds of refrigerant leak 125% or more of their full charge in one calendar year.

5.) Extended the sales restriction to HFCs and other non-exempt substitutes, with the exception of small cans (containing 2 pounds or less) of non-exempt substitutes (e.g., primarily HFC-134a) for motor vehicle air conditioner servicing. These small cans can continue to be sold without technician certification so long as the small cans have a self-sealing valve to reduce refrigerant releases.

6.) Required technicians to keep a record of refrigerant recovered during system disposal from systems with a charge size from 5–50 lbs.

California’s Proposition 65 Regulations

Recently, we’ve received questions regarding whether Dynatemp’s products require a Proposition 65 label or not. In this post, we hope to answer your questions and provide you with links to all of the Prop 65 information you may need.
  1.  As seen on the Prop 65 website: “Proposition 65 requires the State to publish a list of chemicals known to cause cancer or birth defects or other reproductive harm. Proposition 65 requires businesses to notify Californians about significant amounts of chemicals in the products they purchase, in their homes or workplaces, or that are released into the environment. By providing this information, Proposition 65 enables Californians to make informed decisions about protecting themselves from exposure to these chemicals.”
  2.  Cylinders that contain brass need Prop 65 warning labels because of the lead component in brass. Dynatemp’s cylinders do not contain brass and therefore do not need a Prop 65 label.
  3.  At this time all of the refrigerants we offer are not on the Prop 65 list and do not require a warning label.
In conclusion, none of Dynatemp’s products require a Prop 65 warning label. If changes occur we will keep you posted.
Follow the link for more Prop 65 info, including lists of affected products and FAQs.

More States Advocate for HFC Reductions

On the one-year anniversary of the Trump Administration withdrawing from the global Paris Agreement, seventeen U.S. Governors, representing over 40% of the nation’s population, announced a new wave of climate actions on June 1 as part of their efforts with the United States Climate Alliance (USCA).  States that are part of this initiative are California, Colorado, Connecticut, Delaware, Hawaii, Maryland, Massachusetts, Minnesota, New Jersey, New York, North Carolina, Oregon, Rhode Island, Vermont,Virginia, Washington and the territory of Puerto Rico.

Developing a short-lived climate pollutant (SLCP) plan is part of a new wave of climate action initiatives.  Those initiatives include:

  • Reducing Super Pollutants (HFC’s)
  • Mobilizing Financing for Climate Projects
  • Grid Modernization
  • Renewable Energy
  • Appliance Energy Efficiency Standards
  • Building Resilient Communities and Infrastructure
  • Increasing Carbon Storage in our Landscapes
  • Deploying Clean Transportation

The USCA pointed out to strategies which reduce HFC emissions as “those technologies that promote more energy efficient systems that lower costs for businesses and households, support the leadership of U.S. businesses developing alternatives to HFCs, and increase the need for skilled technicians and system designers.”

As an example, the state of New York has directed state departments to reduce HFC emissions through regulatory, incentive, and capacity building.  The NY Department of Environmental Conservation is monitoring the initiative and other agencies have been directed to work on this item.  In his 2018 State of the State, New York Governor Cuomo directed state agencies to develop a comprehensive plan to reduce HFC emissions through a suite of regulatory, incentive, and capacity-building programs.

The Alliance said it “invites all national and subnational jurisdictions, businesses and other actors to bring commitments to reduce short-lived climate pollutants to the Global Climate Action Summit in San Francisco, California this September.”  More information can be found here.  http://globalclimateactionsummit.org/.

The EPA Postpones SNAP Rule 20

Ozone Depletion

In 2015, the Environmental Protection Agency announced that they were going to phase-out HFC refrigerants through a new rule under Section 612 of the Clean Air Act. The new rule, SNAP Rule 20, set a schedule to phase-out HFC refrigerants like R-134a, R-404a, and R-410a. For more details on this rule click here. Although many in the refrigerant industry began to prepare for the next phase of refrigerants, a lawsuit, brought by Mexichem and Arkema, overturned SNAP Rule 20 due to the fact that EPA did not have authority under the Clean Air Act to target HFC’s. The Clean Air Act’s original intention was to phase-out ozone depleting refrigerants, and while HFC’s have high global warming potential, they are not ozone depleting.

While Honeywell and Chemour’s appealed the courts decision, they were ultimately ruled against marking the end of SNAP Rule 20.  Although the EPA has acknowledged that they will no longer enforce the rule, we know eventually HFC’s will be phased-out for lower global warming potential refrigerants like HFO’s.

We would prefer that the state department adopt the Kigali Amendment, which sets the framework for a global phase-down of HFC refrigerants. Read our opinion on the benefits to the Kigali Amendment here.

Without the Kigali Amendment, states will create their own phase-down laws, similar to what California’s CARB is doing. A worldwide phase-down would be much cleaner and easier for the industry as a whole. For now, we wait until the Trump Administration decides their course of action for HFC phase-downs.