Air conditioning units on the side of a building. Credit: Jason Larkin/Construction Photography/Avalon/Getty Images A coalition of U.S. manufacturers and environmental organizations is calling on the federal government to quickly phase out the worst climate super-polluting chemicals currently used in air conditioners, refrigerators and other appliances, as well as in aerosols and foam insulation. The five, closely related petitions filed with the agency on Tuesday mark an unusual case in which business and environmental interests have aligned to address climate change. Specifically, the groups are calling on the EPA to ban the use of certain hydrofluorocarbons (HFCs), chemical refrigerants used in air conditioning, refrigeration systems and other applications that contribute to climate change. “This is a pretty rare occurrence in environmental protection where everyone’s headed in the same direction and they want to get there fast,” said Stephen Anderson, director of research for the Institute for Governance and Sustainable Development, one of three environmental groups that submitted petitions. The petitions were filed in response to a recent law passed by Congress to address HFCs that encourages petitioning to give stakeholders a say in which areas they feel the EPA should focus on first. We deliver climate news to your […]
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