Government structures

The US HVACR industry has called on the incoming Trump administration to ratify the Kigali amendment to the Montreal Protocol in order to protect US manufacturing and employment.

Efforts by the Asian giant to reduce HCFC and HFC consumption will move the global HVAC&R market, according to the European Commission.

The Kigali Amendment to the Montreal Protocol will help increase investment in natural refrigerant technologies, according to the French government.

The amended refrigeration and air conditioning directive, which entered into force on 1 January, will subsidise the installation of natural refrigerant-based systems in Germany.

On 1 January 2017, the island country increased its synthetic greenhouse gas (SGG) levy rates for imported goods and vehicles by 295.5% compared to the previous year.

The FSB-drafted guidelines emerge as the legal imperative increases for large companies to disclose the business impact of climate change.

Shortly after last month’s global agreement to phase down HFCs, Canada has tabled proposals to reduce its production and imports of these greenhouse gases.

The Parties to the Montreal Protocol on Substances that Deplete the Ozone Layer reached agreement at their 28th Meeting of the Parties on 15 October 2016 in Kigali, Rwanda to phase-down hydrofluorocarbons (HFCs). HFCs are commonly used alternatives to ozone depleting substances (ODS). While not ozone depleting substances themselves, HFCs are greenhouse gases which can have high or very high global warming potentials (GWPs), ranging from about 121 to 14,800.

The EEA is to report that the amount of HFC refrigerant placed on the market in 2015 – the first year of the phase-down mechanism – was within the quota allowance.

22 November 2016: Since the Paris Agreement entered into force on 4 November 2016, an additional 12 Parties to the UNFCCC have deposited their instruments of ratification, acceptance, approval or accession to the Paris Agreement, bringing the total number of Parties that have joined the Agreement to 113. The UNFCCC, which is a nearly universal treaty, has 197 Parties.

As the UN Climate Change Conference came to a close in Marrakech, after two weeks of inclusive and positive negotiations and hundreds of activities and side-events featuring Heads of State and Government, delegations and participants from around the world, COP22 President Salaheddine Mezouar and Steering committee members held a press conference to take stock on outcomes and achievements.

His campaign statements suggest the EPA’s HFC restrictions could be slowed down, impacting CO₂ uptake, but industry support of the Kigali Amendment could make HFCs a low priority.

Chisinau, Republic of Moldova, 10 November 2016 – Heads of national refrigeration assocations and Montreal Protocol focal points from 11 Central Asian and Caucasus countries enhance ozone layer protection and sustainable management of climate gases: The experts shared highlights, challenges and lessons learnt from the implementation of their respective hydrochlorofluoro carbon (HCFC) phase-out strategies and from the surveys on ozone-friendly alternatives during the thematic meeting in Chisinau, Republic of Moldova, 8-10 November 2016.

Chisinau, Republic of Moldova, 10 November 2016 – Heads of national refrigeration assocations and Montreal Protocol focal points from 11 Central Asian and Caucasus countries enhance ozone layer protection and sustainable management of climate gases: The experts shared highlights, challenges and lessons learnt from the implementation of their respective hydrochlorofluoro carbon (HCFC) phase-out strategies and from the surveys on ozone-friendly alternatives during the thematic meeting in Chisinau, Republic of Moldova, 8-10 November 2016.

The world must urgently and dramatically increase its ambition to cut roughly a further quarter off predicted 2030 global greenhouse emissions and have any chance of minimizing dangerous climate change, UN Environment said today as it released its annual Emissions Gap report.

The Paris Agreement’s entry into force is an historic day – it shows the shift to a greener world is irreversible.

As part of the Kigali agreement to phase-down HFCs, under the Montreal Protocol, China is proposing a review of safety standards to remove barriers to alternatives to HFCs, especially natural refrigerants.

The Kigali Amendment is an amendment to the Montreal Protocol on Substances that Deplete the Ozone Layer. It was adopted by the 28th Meeting of Parties to the Montreal Protocol on 15 October 2016 in Kigali, Rwanda. The Amendment adds powerful greenhouse gases hydrofluorocarbons (HFCs) to the list of substances controlled under the Protocol to be phased down. The Amendment will enter into force when the conditions indicated under question 6 below are met.

Kigali, 15 October 2016 — Nearly 200 countries struck a landmark deal today to reduce the emissions of powerful greenhouse gases, hydrofluorocarbons (HFCs), in a move that could prevent up to 0.5 degrees Celsius of global warming by the end of this century.

The twenty-eighth Meeting of the Parties to the Montreal Protocol on Substances that Deplete the Ozone Layer (MOP 28) met from 10-14 October 2016, in Kigali, Rwanda. Over 500 participants from governments, UN agencies, intergovernmental and non-governmental organizations, academia, and industry attended the meeting.