|
Call: +44(0)1234 841221 E-mail: [email protected]
F-gas
Refrigeration Regulations 2007
Regulation
(EC) No 842/2006 of the European Parliament and of the Council on
certain fluorinated greenhouse gases
These
pages are intended as a guide to stakeholders on Regulation (EC) No
842/2006 of the European Parliament and of the Council on certain
fluorinated greenhouse gases. On this page you will find a summary
of the latest developments, the final text of the Regulation and MAC
Directive, initial Government guidance and minutes of the industry
stakeholders meetings. Contact details are provided at the bottom
of the page. Index
1.
Latest Developments
This
section summarises key recent developments. More details and links to
documents are provided in the sections below. Defra
together with the DTI, Scottish Executive, Welsh Assembly and other
stakeholders, have produced supplementary guidance for stationary
refrigeration air-conditioning and heat pump users with an accompanying
refrigerant charge calculator spreadsheet (see section 5). The
Refrigerant charge calculator spreadsheet has been prepared to help
estimate the amount of refrigerant in refrigeration or air-conditioning
equipment. Making a reasonable estimate of the refrigerant charge
in a circuit is necessary in order to understand which of the
Regulation's obligations will apply to the operator responsible for that
piece of equipment. The
supplementary guidance complements the recently published UK
Government initial guidance and Frequently Asked
Questions documents. You can download a copy of the
initial guidance and the FAQ documents in section 4. DTI,
working with other Whitehall departments and the devolved
administrations, continues to seek the views of UK industry on
implementing the Regulation and would appreciate your comments. If
you wish to comment, please e-mail your views to Alan Morgan ([email protected])
at the Sustainable Development Unit. Respondents
in Scotland are requested to copy comments to the Scottish Executive’s
Climate Change Team [email protected] 2.
Summary
of the Regulation and final text
The
f-gas Regulation and Directive were published on 14 June 2006 in the
Official Journal of the European Union and entered into force is 4 July
2006. It will apply with effect from 4 July 2007. The
objectives of the Regulation
The
principal objective is to contain, prevent and thereby reduce emissions
of f-gases covered by the Kyoto Protocol. This Regulation will make a
significant contribution towards the European Community's Kyoto Protocol
target by introducing cost-effective mitigation measures and to prevent
distortion of the internal market. The
main focus is on containment and recovery of f-gases, together with
harmonised restrictions on the marketing and use of f-gases in
applications where containment of f-gases is difficult to achieve or the
use of f-gases is considered inappropriate and suitable alternatives
exist. The
sectors affected
The
containment and recovery articles in the Regulation will have an impact
on the commercial refrigeration, air-conditioning and heat pump sectors
and in the fire protection sector; and for the personnel involved in the
installation, servicing and recovery of f-gases from these systems as
well as from equipment containing fluorinated greenhouse gas based
solvents, high voltage switchgear and fire extinguishers. Operators of
relevant systems will have a range of obligations including prompt
leakage repair, leakage checking and record keeping and ensuring
appropriately qualified personnel are used. However,
this Regulation will potentially also have an impact on a wider range of
f-gas uses due to the recovery obligation provided for in Article 4.3. The
Regulation will also impact on producers, importers and exporters of
f-gases if they produce, import or export more than 1 tonne of f-gases
per annum as they will have to report to the Commission and Member
States' competent authorities on the amounts produced, imported or
exported. In
addition, specified products and equipment that contain f-gases will be
subject to labelling requirements and specific uses of f-gases and
products that contain f-gases are controlled or banned by the
Regulation. These cover certain uses of sulphur hexafluoride for
magnesium die-casing, use of certain f-gases in non-refillable
containers, fire protection systems, tyres, one component foams, novelty
aerosols, footwear and windows and self-chilling cans. f-gas
Regulation (EC) No 842/2006 3.
MAC Directive and final text
During
negotiations in Council it was agreed that the measures in the
Regulation relating to Mobile Air Conditioning (MAC) should form part of
a separate Directive amending existing vehicle type approval
legislation. · the
introduction of maximum leakage rates
4.
Initial UK
Government Guidance
Key
obligations in the Regulation will apply in the UK and the rest of the
EU from 4th July 2007. The Government is continuing to work with
stakeholders to ensure that the f-gas Regulation is successfully
implemented and its environmental objectives achieved. This
initial framework guidance is a key part of that work and has been
developed in discussion with stakeholder groups. The guidance will be
updated as necessary, including in the light of progress of the work of
the f-gas Regulatory Committee (see section on article 12). A
supplementary document to the initial guidance on frequently asked
questions has also been published. EC
regulation on certain fluorinated greenhouse gases - UK Government
initial guidance - September 2006 EC
Regulation no 842/2006 on certain fluorinated greenhouse gases:
frequently asked questions 5.
Supplementary
Guidance for Stationary Refrigeration, Air-Conditioning and Heat Pump
Users
This
Guidance Note is a supplement to the UK Government Initial Guidance (see
above)
The
supplementary Guidance note is only aimed at stationary refrigeration,
air-conditioning and heat pump users. Other sectors affected by
the F-Gas Regulation (e.g. fire protection systems, solvents, foam
blowing, aerosols) should refer to the UK Government Initial Guidance
above. EC
Regulation no 842/2006 on certain fluorinated greenhouse gases.
Supplementary guidance for statutory refrigeration, air-conditioning and
heat pump users. The Refrigerant charge calculator
spreadsheet has been prepared to help estimate the amount of refrigerant
in refrigeration or air-conditioning equipment. Making a reasonable
estimate of the refrigerant charge in a circuit is necessary in
order to understand which of the Regulation's obligations will apply to
the operator responsible for that piece of equipment. To use the
Refrigerant Charge Calculator you will need to enable the macros.
The macro security settings within Excel will need to be set at low
or medium. Refrigerant
Charge Calculator *Information
from the DTI website. Contact Us:Sales Installation and Service
UK: +44 (0)1234 841221
|
