US: Court strikes down EPA restrictions on HFCs

In August, the US Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia (D.C.) overturned Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) directives to ban high GWP HFC refrigerants like R404A, R134a, R407C and R410A from use in certain applications from as early as January 1, 2021. In the case, brought by refrigerant manufacturers Mexichem and Arkema, the Court decided 2-to-1 that the EPA could not use SNAP Program, established under Section 612 of the Clean Air Act to target HFCs. That’s because the section that EPA references is intended to protect the ozone layer and would not seem to grant EPA authority to require replacement of non-ozone-depleting HFCs.

On September 22, Chemours and Honeywell, joined by the Natural Resources Defense Council (NRDC) filed a petition for rehearing of the D.C. Circuit Court of Appeals decision, arguing that the Court's ruling exceeded its jurisdiction and that American companies had invested well over USD 1 billion in the development of low GWP HFOs. If the court declines to rehear the case, the parties involved could try appealing to the Supreme Court.

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