The Basics
What is a refrigerant used for?
Cooling air by moving heat in fridges, ACs, and freezers.
What does GWP stand for?
Global Warming Potential
What device helps detect refrigerant leaks?
A leak detector.
What international agreement banned CFCs?
The Montreal Protocol
True or False: All communities are equally affected by refrigerant leaks.
False.
What's the name of the common refrigerant with a GWP of 1,430?
HFC-134a
How much more heat-trapping is HFC-134a than CO2?
1,430 times more
What does a recovery machine do?
It removes refrigerants from old appliances safely.
What 2016 agreement started phasing out HFCs?
Why do poorer communities have higher refrigerant leak exposure?
They use older AC units and fridges that leak more.
True or False: All refrigerants are naturally occurring
How many billions tons of emissions could be avoided with proper refrigerant Management?
90 billion tons.
What low-impact refrigerant is already used in Europe and has a GWP of 1?
CO2.
What U.S. law was passed in 2020 to address refrigerants?
The AIM Act.
What is environmental injustice?
When pollution affects marginalized communities more than others.
What makes refrigerants more dangerous than carbon dioxide when they leak into the atmosphere?
Refrigerants trap way more heat than carbon dioxide, some are over 1,000 times stronger. Even small leaks can cause a big impact on global warming because of how powerful they are.
What type of pollution do leaking refrigerants contribute to?
Greenhouse gas emissions and air pollution
Why do some companies avoid switching to better refrigerants?
It's more expensive, or they don't want to change systems.
What does the EPA do about refrigerants?
Set rules for production, recovery, and disposal.
Why do some companies dump appliances in other countries?
It's cheaper than recycling them properly.
What part of your AC or fridge leaks refrigerant?
The compressor or cooling coil.
What gas was banned because it damaged the ozone layer?
CFCs (chlorofluorocarbons)
Name one alternate refrigerant with a GWP below 10.
Ammonia, propane, or CO2.
Name one global consequence of not managing refrigerants.
More global warming, ozone damage, or climate injustice.
How can refrigerant dumping be considered an environmental racism?
Toxic waste is often dumped in poor, non-white communities globally.