Refrigerants Phase-out
> He says the industry should be aiming to use more registration and a separate one for training operatives in
How can you
natural refrigerants, but not at the expense of “common place. It also stated that it sees no future for many of the
sense”. “How can you justify banning equipment that still commonly used refrigerants and expects a whole new
justify banning
has 20 to 30 years of useful operating life?” he asks. “I generation of low global warming potential (GWP) gases
equipment that
don’t think that is a sustainable position.” to emerge to replace HFCs.
has 20 to 30
Belgium also sees no future for HFCs, stating: “We
UK playing catch up on F-Gas believe in natural refrigerants.” It already has a compulsory
years of useful
The UK government has agreed to the creation of a register for companies and a separate one for operatives.
operating life? I
mandatory register of air conditioning firms certified The Czech Republic is in the process of passing a new law
don’t think that
to handle refrigerant gases, but has rejected calls for a to penalise unauthorised handling of refrigerants.
separate register of individual operatives. Denmark is already fully regulated and has introduced
is a sustainable
DEFRA has appointed the voluntary register REFCOM a punitive tax regime to restrict the use of HFCs, whereas
position
to manage the system of company certifications, which is a Germany still sees a long-term role for HFCs and is
– Bob Arthur,
legal requirement under the European F-Gas Regulation, enforcing the regulation with that in mind. Hungary has a
designed to tackle the problem of leakage from air plethora of arrangements in place to enforce the regulation
refrigeration
conditioning and refrigeration systems. and France’s company registration scheme came into
technology
Companies will have until 4 July to obtain either full effect on 1 January this year.
manager, Marks
or interim certification and from that date wholesalers Holland has had its groundbreaking STEK scheme
will be prohibited from selling refrigerant cylinders to for registration and control of refrigerant usage in place
& Spencer
unregistered firms. Currently only 350 companies are since 1993. This covers both companies and individuals
registered with REFCOM, which was set up by the HVCA and has often been referred to as a model approach with
in 1994, leaving almost 7,000 to complete the process in impressive leakage reduction statistics to back it up.
four months. Italy’s chambers of commerce will run a registration
Industry bodies, including the Air Conditioning system and already have records of company activities. It
and Refrigeration Industry Board (ACRIB), had urged supports the continued use of HFCs. Slovakia is putting
the government to add a mandatory requirement for its faith in an electronic system of recording and tracking
registration of individuals to curb the activities of so- refrigerant sales and usage, while Sweden has had a
called “cowboy” installers. However, DEFRA rejected register for companies and operatives since 1989.
this and stated that certified companies would only be “Most other countries do not have to write legislative
able to employ qualified personnel and that registration statutory instruments as they already have company
of individuals “would represent too much of a financial registration schemes,” explains Graeme Fox, the UK
burden for small businesses”. representative on the AREA technical and environment
committee. “It is really only in the UK and Ireland where
Discrepancies we have the freedom to start up businesses with little or
A survey by AREA – the umbrella body for European no regulation.”
Slow mover... the UK contractor trade bodies – showed significant discrepancies Ireland stated that it “expects” to leave enforcement of
is falling behind other in how other countries are approaching implementation the regulation entirely in the hands of its Environmental
European countries on of F-Gas rules, with the UK falling behind. Protection Agency and has taken no other steps so far.
the implementation of For example, Austria has had relevant legislation in place
F-Gas rules for 40 years and so already has a scheme for company Loophole
The HVCA’s Refrigeration and Air Conditioning Group
welcomed measures to restrict sales of refrigerant gas
cylinders to companies on the mandatory register, but was
concerned that this would not tackle the whole problem.
“The F-Gas Regulation says supply of refrigerant
must only be to competent people, but this only refers
to containers and not the units, many of which are pre-
charged,” says RAC Group chairman Karen Leader. “Small
mini-splits are some of the worst offenders for leakage in
the EU and these are freely available in supermarkets and
DIY stores. We would like pre-charged split systems to be
classified as containers to close this loophole.”
She says the decision to appoint REFCOM to manage
the company scheme was the right one, but insisted that
the system depended on proper enforcement and policing
by local and central government.
“The REFCOM scheme contains all the elements
required for the mandatory register, but that does not
mean civil servants can abdicate their responsibilities for
enforcement of the Regulation to the industry.” l
48 CIBSE Journal March 2009
www.cibsejournal.com
CIBSEmar09 pp44-48 Closecontrol.indd 48 5/3/09 14:14:07
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