EPA Steps Up Hydrofluorocarbons Import Enforcement

Agency issues alert highlighting actions taken against companies for noncompliance.

By Jonathan Katz

Sept. 9, 2024

The EPA plans to bolster enforcement of hydrofluorocarbons imports, vowing to work with law enforcement to halt smuggling of these “super pollutants."

The EPA announced the enforcement alert on Sept. 6 in relation to the agency’s work under the American Innovation and Manufacturing Act to phase down production and consumption of hydrofluorocarbons, or HFCs.

The alert highlights actions the agency has taken against companies for noncompliance. It includes nine civil settlements in 2024 totaling $115,551 in penalties to resolve claims of unlawful imports of HFCs.

The AIM Act of 2020 mandates an 85% phasedown of HFCs from historic baseline levels by 2036 and authorizes the EPA to place limits on production and consumption.

More information on the alert and enforcement actions are available at https://www.epa.gov/enforcement/epa-targeting-illegal-imports-hydrofluorocarbon-super-pollutants-combat-climate-change.