Tag: illegal refrigerants

Jail for man behind US R22 Ponzi scheme

A 68-year-old man from St. Louis, Missouri, has been sentenced to prison for orchestrating a Ponzi scheme involving the trade of ozone-depleting R-22 refrigerant. Robert F. Rothluebbers was convicted of wire fraud after admitting to running the scheme from October 2014 to May 2017, during which he defrauded unsuspecting investors of $350,000. Rothluebbers solicited investments, … Continue reading Jail for man behind US R22 Ponzi scheme

As the cost of regulated high-GWP (global warming potential) refrigerants continues to rise and supply diminishes, the illegal trade in these substances is becoming an increasingly pressing global issue.  Regular SightGlass readers will have seen how smugglers exploit weaknesses in customs enforcement and bypass security measures, creating a grey market where refrigerants are sold at … Continue reading The world is still combating illegal refrigerants

The European Union’s ambitious HFC phase-down continues to yield unintended consequences, with the lucrative black market for R134a and other regulated high global warming potential (GWP) products showing no signs of slowing down as smugglers capitalise on sky-rocketing prices caused by legislated quotas that restrict supply.  Quota System Creates a Perfect Storm The EU’s fluorinated … Continue reading Unintended consequences: Europe faces endless whack-a-mole against refrigerant smugglers

Technology will help stem illegal sales, reduce influx of illicit refrigerants EFFORTS to counter the extensive illegal refrigerant trade in Europe are about to be bolstered by a new advanced software system from the United Kingdom.  The system, which will be developed by online trading specialist Vistalworks, will be designed to automatically find and identify … Continue reading Refrigerant robocop

Authorities clamp down on illegal import and cylinder usage A refrigeration specialist based in Victoria has been fined $A12,600 for importing HCFCs without the required permissions.  The company, which imports, builds and supplies air-conditioning systems, was also fined for the use of illegal disposable refrigerant cylinders – a storage method that has been banned since … Continue reading Victorian company hit with HCFC fine

Tide slowly turning on Europe’s illegal refrigerant trade but more action needed A RECENTLY announced review of the European F-gas Regulation could help combat the continent’s ongoing and extensive illegal refrigerant trade.   The Combined Evaluation Roadmap/Inception Impact Assessment, published by the European Commission (EC) in June, aims to research, outline and assess the effectiveness … Continue reading Europe must act on F-gas enforcement

Scale of Europe’s illegal refrigerant trade revealed, but not all bad news An audit carried out by the Norwegian Environment Agency has revealed widespread breaches of F-gas regulations, according to UK specialist outlet Cooling Post. The agency carried out an audit of 20 heat pump distributors and discovered that more than half violated F-gas regulations. … Continue reading F-Gas breaches remain rife in Europe

The surge in illegal CFC-11 production and use in China will, according to a recently published athe recovery of the ozone layer. The paper, titled Delay in recovery of the Antarctic ozone hole from unexpected CFC-11 emissions, suggests that the emissions could add two years to the recovery of the ozone layer – if, that … Continue reading Ozone under threat from CFC-11

The illegal refrigerant trade in Europe is extracting a heavy toll on legitimate business on both sides of the Atlantic. As a case in point, the profits of US-based refrigerant and chemical specialist Chemours fell from $10.1 billion in 2018 to $8.4 billion in 2019, with the hydrofluorocarbon (HFC) black market cited as one of … Continue reading Trade in illegal refrigerant hits hard

A study published by an international team of scientists has further identified China as the source of significant CFC-11 emissions, despite it being phased out in 2010 under Montreal Protocol. The chemical, which is particularly damaging to the ozone layer and has a high global warming potential (GWP) of 4660, was historically used primarily in … Continue reading Mystery CFC-11 emissions