Geosphere Technologies, Inc. and the United Nations Industrial Development Organization (UNIDO), in coordination with the Environmental Management Bureau (EMB) of the Department of Environment and Natural Resources (DENR), led the closing of the project “Enabling Activities for HFC Phase-down in the Philippines Related to the Kigali Amendment of the Montreal Protocol” in Quezon City on 26 April 2022. The project was conceived to facilitate and support the early ratification of the Kigali Amendment and country-specific activities and national strategies to fulfill the phase-down of hydrofluorocarbons (HFCs) in the Philippines.
Geosphere presented the Roadmap on the Implementation of the Kigali Amendment and a report on the study on opportunities for efficient energy in the refrigeration and air-conditioning (RAC) sector to stakeholders, namely refrigerant importers, local manufacturing companies, national associations of RAC technicians, mechanical engineers, and national government agencies.
The report indicates that shifting to better HFC alternatives will reshape the market status quo. It is viewed that once manufacturers stop HFCs production, HFCs supply and demand will fall and rise, respectively. This will result to an increase in HFC prices and manufacturers of equipment using HFC will be more inclined to shift to alternatives. The report also states that R-290, ammonia, CO2, and hydrofluoroolefins (HFOs) are available in the Philippine market and as alternatives to HFCs, they have significantly lower global warming potential.
EMB Assistant Director Vizminda A. Osorio thanked Geosphere for its comprehensive study on HFC phase-down in the country as the Philippine government could use it in formulating its appropriate national action plan once the Kigali Amendment is officially ratified.
“The completion of the Enabling Activity Project toward the ratification of the Kigali Amendment will be a commencement of our commitment to a safer environment with the phase-down of HFCs in the Philippines,” EMB Director William Cuñado said.
EMB announced that it is taking the phase-down of HFCs seriously by adopting measures to control the importation of these chemicals. One such measure is by requiring the importers to secure a Pre-shipment Importation Clearance (PSIC) through its Online Permitting and Monitoring System (OPMS) prior to HFCs shipment.
Moreover, the Bureau recognizes the importance of proper management of HFCs in the country by adopting a cradle-to-grave policy, which mandates wastes generator to collect all discarded HFCs, store them in a proper facility, and send them to a disposal facility for proper decommissioning to avoid HFC emission and contamination.
With funding from the Pollution Adjudication Board (PAB), an interim storage facility in San Mateo, Rizal will be constructed to store discarded HFCs and ozone depleting substances (ODS). In addition, a destruction facility for HFCs and other refrigerants is planned to be established in Norzagaray, Bulacan, through the assistance of the Ministry of Environment, Government of Japan (MOEJ) with its Joint Crediting Mechanism (JCM) Fund. It will be managed jointly by Marubeni, Japan and Holcim Philippines, Inc., and will be strictly monitored by EMB.
With this development, the Philippines is hoping that it can achieve zero emission of ODS and HFCs in compliance with the Montreal Protocol and its Kigali Amendment, which aims to prevent a 0.5°C rise of global temperature while protecting the ozone layer. (HFC Project/ Joylan Nephie Babia)
