| EPA Section 608 Covers Refrigerant Gas Emissions |
| Written by Daniel Stouffer | |
| Thursday, 09 April 2009 | |
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Refrigerant gases contribute to global warming and ozone layer depletion as they contain harmful chlorofluorocarbons and hydrochlorofluorocarbons. EPA section 608 of the US Clean Air Act deals with regulations which govern the handling, recovery and recycling of refrigerants during a variety of processes, including maintenance, repair, service or disposal.
Refrigerant gases contribute to global warming and ozone layer depletion as they contain harmful chlorofluorocarbons and hydrochlorofluorocarbons. EPA section 608 of the US Clean Air Act deals with regulations which govern the handling, recovery and recycling of refrigerants during a variety of processes, including maintenance, repair, service or disposal. According to EPA section 608, it is illegal to intentionally vent refrigerants into the air during routine maintenance, repair, service or disposal of equipment. So long as monitoring is in place, discharge of refrigerants during normal operation is allowed. The current restrictions on refrigerant gas usage are covered by EPA section 608 and guidelines are set out to cover the phase out, the eventual elimination of compounds and acceptable, approved substitutes. Many different applications are covered, including industrial process refrigeration, transport refrigeration, retail food refrigeration, chillers, cold storage warehouses and packaged air-conditioners. There are major recordkeeping regulations under epa section 608 for technicians, owners and operators of systems using refrigerant gases, wholesalers of refrigerants and reclaimers. Anyone involved in any part of the process that involves refrigerants must keep proper records outlining the date, type of service and amount of refrigerant involved. These records are required to be submitted to the EPA for compliance purposes. Those who fail to follow the law could be subject to fines of up to $32,500 per day per violation. EPA section 608 outlines the leak repair requirements applicable to commercial refrigeration, air conditioning systems, heating ventilation and air conditioning systems, and industrial process refrigeration appliances. Once a leak occurs the facility owner is required to keep precise records of the quantity of discharged gas. Leak repairs must be fixed within a 30 day period as spelled out by EPA section 608. This time frame is decided by the projected discharge over a 12 month period rather than the total quantity of refrigerant loss. To ensure that the information is correctly tracked, regulations dictate that companies maintain and submit accurate records. Complying with epa section 608 means technicians must follow evacuation requirements when opening cooling and refrigeration systems during maintenance, service and repair circumstances. The regulation requires refrigerant reclaimers who reprocess used refrigerant back to specified purity levels to be certified by the EPA. EPA section 608 covers a variety of topics. Specific guidelines cover various issues and circumstances involving refrigerants, including those involved in refrigerant sales and distribution and refrigerant reclamation and leak repairs. Manufacturers or importers of refrigerant recovery and recycling equipment are required to submit to testing at an EPA approved facility and to provide certification to would-be buyers. The Article Author: Daniel Stouffer has a lot more data on the need for effective refrigerant gas management and more data about the epa section 608 . |
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