Refrigerant emissions control scheme revealed

9:07 am today

Photo: 123RF

A new scheme to control how refrigerants in heat pumps and other appliances are handled and disposed of will help to reduce potent greenhouse gases, the trust involved says.

The Ministry for the Environment will introduce the regulated product stewardship scheme for synthetic refrigerant gases by mid-2027.

Hydrofluorocarbon gases - or HFCs - are found in commercial refrigeration units, heat pumps and air conditioners and are among the most potent greenhouse gases.

They account for about 2 percent of New Zealand's total emissions.

The emissions they produce are mostly avoidable, coming from leaks and poor end-of-life handling.

The scheme will be run by the Trust for the Destruction of Synthetic Refrigerants, which recently invested $10m into a plant in Kawerau so the gases can be destroyed in New Zealand instead of shipped offshore.

The trust has run a voluntary scheme since 2010, which it says has already saved 1.5 million tonnes of carbon dioxide-equivalent emissions from being released into the atmosphere.

It's the second stewardship scheme the government has agreed to bring in, after regulations for how used tyres are disposed of were introduced in 2024.

Trust chair Richard Lauder said unlike that scheme, which adds a small charge per tyre at the time of purchase, there will not be a direct cost to suppliers or customers.

By destroying the gases, the trust is able to earn carbon credits through the Emissions Trading Scheme, which it can then sell to fund its activities.

On top of that, the trust pays $40 per litre of gas brought to it for disposal, creating an additional incentive, Lauder said.

The regulations are still being finalised but would also likely require those handling synthetic refrigerants and appliances containing them to be properly qualified, Lauder said.

For those already working with the gases, that would likely be through some form of recognition of prior learning,

He also expected there to be mandatory reporting of gas transactions - such as when and how often the gas in a refrigeration unit was topped up - so that leaking units could be easily identified and fixed.

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