A very important agreement on HFCs is signed with the strong support of France

USPA NEWS - A historic agreement was reached at the end of the night between the 197 countries party to the Montreal Protocol to reduce the use of HFC gases. This agreement will allow a phasing out of HFCs (hydrofluorocarbons), used in air conditioning (offices, homes, vehicles), domestic appliances and fridges

A historic agreement was reached at the end of the night between the 197 countries party to the Montreal Protocol to reduce the use of HFC gases.This agreement will allow a phasing out of HFCs (hydrofluorocarbons), used in air conditioning (offices, homes, vehicles), domestic appliances and refrigerated sales displays, restaurants, logistics warehouses. These substances have emerged in recent years in substitution of substances harmful to the ozone layer (CFCs, HCFCs).-------------- Failing agreement, the experts felt that these substances are the cause of 20% of emissions of greenhouse gases by 2050, and would have generated up to 0.5 ° C of global warming by 2100.The agreement reached tonight take to reduce the use of these gases upon the entry into force of the amendment, according to a progressive schedule that allows you to start substitution in countries that are the consumers of refrigerants, including US, EU and China. It is also legally binding and provides for a phase-out schedule for all countries.----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- A revision clause was also added to the agreement to allow to include a more ambitious timetable in view of technological progress and the beneficial effects of deep cuts that have already been made in the most consuming countries fluids. Ségolène Royal wants this review to be an opportunity to accelerate the ambition, like the review conducted on the same protocol for the HCFC substances that had concluded an accelerated schedule.----------------------------------------------------------------------- The first estimates of the agreement reached this morning used to wait about 72 billion tonnes of CO2 equivalent emissions avoided by 2050 (including 8 billion tons due to European and US legislation recently adopted and included in the agreement). A gain of about 8 to 10 billion tonnes CO2 equivalent additional is also expected provisions on recycling and disposal of by-products with high heating power in industrial manufacturing units HFCs. For the record, annual anthropogenic emissions of France amounted to half a billion tonnes of CO2.---------------------------------------------------------- This agreement will also allow the use in private homes and in alternative refrigerants professionals available today: hydrocarbons, carbon dioxide, ammonia, water or other synthetic chemicals called hydrofluoroléfines (HFO). France, in particular Ségolène Royal of the pulse, has invested heavily in recent months to promote this agreement: exchanges with ministers of other countries, financial commitments, exemplary behavior by setting calls for projects and funding to fund one hand actions for research and development and other industrial converting equipment production facilities to alternative fluids. Segolene Royal stresses that this agreement will strengthen the objective of the Paris agreement to limit global warming to 1.5 ° C - 2 ° C by 2100.SOurce French Ministry of Ecology and sustainable development