SAN FRANCISCO–(BUSINESS WIRE)–Signaling a significant and early milestone, EOS Climate has developed the first Ozone Depleting Substances (ODS) destruction project verified and listed under the Climate Action Reserve (CAR) registry’s new U.S. Ozone Depleting Substances Project Protocol. It is not only the first ODS destruction project verified and listed under CAR but is also the only project developed from exclusively U.S.-sourced ODS.
“EOS Climate’s team exhibits the expertise to deliver permanent emissions reductions on time and at scale to companies looking to cost effectively reduce their environmental impact”
The project — which gathered and destroyed CFC-12 refrigerants harvested from more than 100,000 recycled refrigerators and commercial cooling systems — has generated 503,648 vintage 2010 Climate Reserve Tonnes (CRT). This means we have prevented emissions equivalent to burning 56.65 million gallons of gasoline. CFC-12 is a greenhouse gas 10,900 times more potent than carbon dioxide. Without the new protocols from CAR this gas would have been sold into the secondary market for the gas and reused until it leaked into the atmosphere.
Gases go through the purification process at the Hudson Technologies plant. ODS chemicals must be separated and purified before they can be permanently destroyed.
“This project demonstrates EOS Climate’s unique and pioneering approach to ODS end-of-life,” said Joe Madden, CEO, EOS Climate. “The company and its partners are not only diverting chemicals from re-use and release into the atmosphere; we are catalyzing change in business practices, encouraging adoption of more advanced technologies and equipment, and creating new skilled jobs. This novel approach leads to long-lasting industry change.”
EOS Climate worked with partners JACO Environmental, the country’s largest appliance recycler, Hudson Technologies, a leading distributor and reclaimer of refrigerants and Clean Harbors Environmental Services, the leading provider of environmental, energy and industrial services and the largest hazardous waste disposal company in North America. This ground-breaking partnership is driving permanent, scalable greenhouse gas emissions reductions to the evolving carbon market, generating high quality emissions reductions through the destruction of ODS that have been phased out of production.
There is growing interest in projects of this kind, both in the U.S. and around the world. The Montreal Protocol has commissioned a number of studies on ODS end-of-life issues.
“EOS Climate has successfully pioneered the concept of ODS destruction in carbon markets, and the issuance of the first CRTs show carbon finance can provide a solution to this massive environmental problem,” said Madden. “EOS and its partners are committed to building on this early success to prevent ODS from contributing to further climate change and facilitating the transition to a more sustainable future.”
Under business-as-usual, CFC refrigerants in old equipment either leak during operations, or are recovered during servicing or end-of-life, and are recycled for use in other older equipment. Either way, ultimately all the gases are released to the atmosphere. Ideal scenario: ODS destruction credits are issued to projects that intervene in this business-as-usual cycle. Instead of being released to the atmosphere, incentives are created for CFCs to be collected and destroyed, permanently preventing greenhouse gas emissions that would otherwise occur.
Reference to Equivalency Calculation
Refrigerators move through the recycling process. JACO Environmental is one of the largest recyclers of household appliances in U.S., demanufacturing more than 400,000 units each year and a pioneer in state-of-the-art, comprehensive end-of-life management of ODS refrigerants and foam blowing agents.
ABOUT EOS CLIMATE
EOS Climate is a pioneering San Francisco-based company, dedicated to protecting the environment through permanent, and verifiable, greenhouse gas reductions. The company specializes in collection and destruction of chlorofluorocarbons (CFCs) and other ozone-depleting substances (ODS). These chemicals not only destroy the Earth’s protective ozone layer but are also potent greenhouse gases. While production of CFCs have been phased out under the Montreal Protocol, large volumes remain in widespread use in older equipment and building infrastructure that are being released to the atmosphere under business as usual. EOS Climate conceived and operationalized a ground-breaking program, supporting a new global effort to create market-based incentives to prevent these emissions and accelerate the transition to more advanced, efficient technologies. Through its extensive network of partners and ODS users/suppliers, EOS Climate offers rapid project execution, permanent emissions reduction, transparency, and readily monitored and verifiable offsets.
Visit: www.eosclimate.com
“EOS Climate’s team exhibits the expertise to deliver permanent emissions reductions on time and at scale to companies looking to cost effectively reduce their environmental impact,” said Madden. “Our first issuance of CRTS was delivered to market in less than three months and to within 0.01 percent of our projected volume. This is a reflection of our expertise in this project type and of the quality of our partners, whose operations were diligently inspected and audited.”
