CFCHCFC Requirements

1
CFC/HCFC Requirements Enforcement Issues

• Don Gansert
• Managing Consultant
• November 20, 2008

trinityconsultants.com
2
40 CFR Part 82

• Subpart A Production Consumption Controls
• Subpart B Servicing of Motor Vehicle Air
  Conditioners
• Subpart C Ban on Nonessential Products
  Containing Class I Substances Nonessential
  Products Containing or Manufactured with Class II
  Substances
• Subpart D Federal Procurement
• Subpart E Labeling of Products Using Ozone
  Depleting Substances (ODS)
• Subpart F Recycling and Emissions Reduction
• Subpart G Significant New Alternatives Policy
  Program

3
Part 82 Subpart F

• Recovery/recycling equipment certifications
• Technician training and certifications
• Leak rate calculation for equipment containing
  greater than 50 lbs of refrigerant (per circuit)
• Maintenance, recordkeeping, reporting
  requirements

Most facilities have the necessary certifications
or use contractors
Common problem areas!
4
Sample Enforcement Actions
Non-compliance with stratospheric ozone
protection requirements is low-hanging fruit for
USEPA and state agencies. 3.6 Billion in
penalties for Part 82 in 1999 alone.
5
Leak Repair Provision Requirements

• Each time your people or contractors add
  refrigerant to a system that holds gt 50 lbs of a
  Class I or Class II compound
• Promptly calculate the annualized leak rate
• If leak rate gt trigger rate, do one of the
  following
• Repair leaks in a timely fashion (later slides)
• Retrofit the system so no longer using a
  regulated CFC (within 1 year)
• Retire the system from service (within 1 year)

6
Applicable Trigger Rates

• Commercial refrigeration units 35
• Industrial process refrigeration units 35
• Comfort cooling systems 15
• All other refrigeration systems 15

7
Leak Rate Calculation Method 1 Annualizing
Method

• Step 1. Take the pounds of refrigerant added to
  return appliance to a full charge and divide it
  by the pounds of refrigerant the appliance
  normally contains at full charge
• Step 2. Divide 365 days by the shorter of the
  of days that have passed since the last day
  refrigerant was added or 365 days
• Step 3. Take the calculated in Step 1 and
  divide it by the calculated in Step 2 and
• Step 4. Multiply the calculated in Step 3 by
  100 to calculate a percentage

8
Leak Rate Calculation

• Determines the amount of refrigerant that would
  leak out in a year if nothing done
• Example (using Annualizing Method)Day 1 -
  Unit fully charged with 250 lbs of
  refrigerantDay 8 - Unit found to have lost 2 lbs
  of refrigerantLeak Rate 41.7

9
Leak Rate Calculation Method 2 Rolling
Average Method

• Step 1. Take sum of the quantity of refrigerant
  added to the appliance over the previous 365-day
  period (or over the period that has passed since
  leaks in the appliance were last repaired, if
  that period is less than one year)
• Step 2. Divide the result of Step 1 by the
  quantity of refrigerant the appliance normally
  contains at full charge and
• Step 3. Multiply the result of Step 2 by 100 to
  obtain a percentage

10
Leak Repair Timeline

• If leak rate exceeds applicable trigger rate,
  then
• Repair within 30 days (not to 0 leak rate but
  must be less than applicable trigger rate)
• If repair within 30 days, no notification needed
• If need gt 30 days to repair due to delays beyond
  your control, must notify the USEPA to request
  more time
• Can request up to 1 year but only the amount of
  time truly needed to make the repair (e.g., to
  receive a new part)
• If cannot repair in a timely fashion, develop
  retrofit or retirement plan within 30 days

If industrial process shutdown needed to make
repair, then have120-day repair window
11
Verification Testing Requirements

• For Industrial Process Refrigeration units (and
  federally-owned commercial refrigeration
  comfort cooling systems)
• Perform an Initial Verification of the repairs
  upon completion (e.g., soap bubble test)
• Perform a Follow-Up Verification test within 30
  days after the Initial Verification test
• Frequently performed as best management
  practice for other refrigerant-containing
  appliances to ensure success of repairs

12
If Fail Follow-up Verification Test

• Must develop a retrofit or retirement plan within
  30 days of the failed test
• Can avoid implementing retrofit or repair plan,
  if
• Attempt repairs again and retest within 30 days
  if succeed 2nd time around, must notify USEPA
  that retrofit or retirement plan is not needed
  within 30 days, or
• Demonstrate, within 180 days of the initial
  failed follow-up verification test, that the
  appliance's annual leak rate does not exceed the
  applicable trigger rate must notify USEPA that
  retrofit or retirement plan is not needed within
  30 days

13
Leak Repair Recordkeeping Reporting

• Facilities must keep the following records for
  all systems with a charge gt 50 lbs of a regulated
  CFC (required even when work is done by
  contractors)
• The system type (e.g., Comfort Cooling)
• Full charge for each system (e.g., 100 lbs of
  R-12)
• Date type of any maintenance and leak
  discoveries
• Who performed the work (to verify certification)
• Amount of refrigerant added
• When the refrigerant added was purchased
• Any leaks that were repaired and the dates of
  repairs
• Calculated annualized leak rate
• For Industrial Process Equipment leaking gt
  trigger rate
• Date result of Initial Verification test
• Date(s) result(s) of Follow-Up Verification
  test(s)

14
Common Mistakes

• Assuming your contractor is handling the leak
  repair provisions (calculations, etc.) for you
• You are responsible for violations no matter what
  the cause!
• Not knowing which units are gt 50 lbs full charge
• Not performing leak rate calculations promptly,
  if at all
• Only have 30 days to repair leaks if over trigger
  rate
• Not performing follow-up verification tests
• Not recording verification test dates results
• Incomplete service records (often just an invoice
  is not enough)

15
Small Appliances

• Small appliances
• Water fountains, refrigerators, window mounted
  air conditioning units, etc.
• Removal of the CFC/HCFC prior to disposal
• Recordkeeping requirements
• Name and date of company performing work
• Certification/proof
• 3 year retention period

16
Summary

• Develop CFC/HCFC inventory of all units
• Identify the units with a capacity of 50 lbs or
  more
• Keep all service records 3 years
• Maintain Leak Rate Calculations
• Small (CFC/HCFC containing) Appliance Disposal
• Keep records/certification 3years
• If you use a contractor, keep copy of the
  contractors certification on file

17
Questions?