Washington to limit HFC usage
19th May 2021
USA: The State of Washington is to implement legislation which could ban the use of HFCs with a GWPs of over 750 in all stationary air conditioning systems, including VRF, by 2026.
The climate bill (HB 1050) signed by Washington State Governor Jay Inslee on Monday seeks to reduce the climate impact of refrigerants used in air conditioners by roughly 70% and in commercial refrigeration systems by around 90%. The bill is based on regulations recently approved by the California Air Resources Board.
The measures establish a maximum GWP of 750 for HFCs in new stationary dehumidifiers and room air conditioners on January 1, 2023. The ban comes in on January 1, 2025, for other types of stationary air conditioning equipment and January 1, 2026, for VRF systems.
As meeting this GWP limit would probably entail the use of flammable refrigerants, the bill adds the proviso that these dates would only apply if the state building code council adopts the ASHRAE and UL safety standards (ASHRAE 15, 15.2 and 34 and UL standard UL 60335-2-40 edition 4) into the state building code before January 1, 2023.
In December, the US Congress enacted the American Innovation and Manufacturing (AIM) Act which will phase down the supply of HFCs over the next 15 years. The US Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) is tasked with implementing the phase down and has already proposed a detailed rule.
Related stories:
US EPA moves to initiate HFC phase down – 3 May 2021
USA: The US EPA has released a proposed rulemaking to establish an allocation system to decrease the production and import of HFCs by 85% over the next 15 years. Read more…
US groups celebrate HFC phasedown bill – 23 December 2020
USA: Industry and green groups have applauded the passage through Congress of a bill to phase down HFC refrigerants. Read more…
