EPA Issues Enforcement Alert to Address Illegal Import of Hydrofluorocarbons into the U.S.

The EPA issued an Enforcement Alert regarding its work under the American Innovation and Manufacturing Act (AIM Act) to phase down production and consumption of hydrofluorocarbons (HFCs). The agency’s new alert provides information on common compliance issues observed with the importation of bulk HFCs and highlights recent civil and criminal enforcement actions. The alert is intended to help address the climate crisis and ensure that companies comply with the law and take the necessary steps to avoid potential EPA enforcement actions.

 

HFCs are potent, super polluting greenhouse gases with a global warming potential that can be hundreds to thousands of times greater than carbon dioxide that are commonly used in refrigeration, air conditioning, and other sectors. EPA’s efforts under the AIM Act are part of a global HFC phasedown that when fully implemented, is expected to reduce global warming by up to 0.5 degrees Celsius.

 

“After another summer of record-breaking heat, the urgency of the climate crisis continues to accelerate. The Biden-Harris administration is committed to meeting our goals to phasedown HFCs, which contribute dramatically to near-term climate change, so that our children and grandchildren can have a sustainable future,” said Assistant Administrator David M. Uhlmann, of EPA’s Office of Enforcement and Compliance Assurance. “EPA and its law enforcement partners will police our borders and ports to halt HFC smuggling to protect our nation from the harmful effects of climate super pollutants.”

 

The AIM Act of 2020 mandates an 85 percent phasedown of HFCs from historic baseline levels by the year 2036 and authorizes the EPA to place limits on production and consumption (including imports), facilitate the transition to next-generation technologies, and minimize releases from equipment using HFCs while maximizing the re-use of existing HFCs. EPA’s enforcement office ensures the HFC phasedown rules are being followed and works to maintain a level playing field for regulated companies. The alert highlights EPA’s recent pursuit of entities that sought to unlawfully import HFCs without the required allowances, submitted false or misleading information, or failed to report required information under the AIM Act.

 

The United States is committed to its obligations under the Kigali Amendment to the Montreal Protocol on Substances that Deplete the Ozone Layer. The AIM Act was passed by Congress to implement the U.S. commitments to the Kigali Amendment that the U.S. officially ratified in October 2022.

 

So far in fiscal year 2024, EPA has completed nine civil settlements to resolve claims of unlawful imports of HFCs. The most recent settlements were against five companies – Clean Venture, Inc., HVAC Services, Liferafts Incorporated of Puerto Rico, Little Leaf Farms, LLC, and Parker Engineering and Mechanical, Inc. Each of these companies imported HFCs without allowances in violation of the AIM Act. If released into the atmosphere, the combined HFCs prevented from these cases are equivalent to over 24 thousand metric tons of CO2, or about the same amount of CO2 produced from powering over 14 thousand homes with electricity for a year. The companies will pay a combined total of $115,551 in civil penalties to resolve the alleged violations. In addition, criminal enforcement actions have also been taken in fiscal year 2024.

 

The “EPA Targeting Illegal Imports of Hydrofluorocarbon Super-Pollutants to Combat Climate Change” enforcement alert is available on the EPA website.

 

 

The Department of Labor has launched its new Severe Injury Report dashboard, a free online tool that allows users to search OSHA’s database of severe injuries, defined as injuries resulting in inpatient hospitalization, amputation, or eye loss. The database includes all severe injuries reported by employers covered under federal OSHA since 2015. It is updated monthly with an intentional six-month delay. According to an OSHA press release, the agency “encourages workers and employers to use the dashboard to learn how severe injuries happen in their industries and use the agency's available resources to help prevent workplace injuries.”

 

OSHA has released a five-minute video tutorial providing instructions on using the dashboard. Users can filter data by year, industry, state, establishment name, and Occupational Injury and Illness Classification System codes, as well as download the full database. The tool allows users to view, for example, the most frequent causes of severe injuries in specific industries and states covered by federal OSHA.

 

Injuries reported to state OSHA plans are not included in federal OSHA’s database and therefore may not be accessed through the dashboard. According to the OSHA tutorial video, “absence of data from state plan states does not indicate that no severe injuries occurred in these states.”

 

More information on the Severe Injury Report dashboard may be found in OSHA’s press release.

 

 

Food producer Hiland Dairy Foods Company, LLC of Norfolk, Nebraska, has agreed to pay a $93,107 civil penalty to resolve alleged violations of the federal Clean Air Act’s chemical risk prevention provisions.

 

According to the EPA, the company stores over 10,000 pounds of anhydrous ammonia, a regulated toxic substance, and failed to comply with regulations intended to protect the surrounding community from accidental releases. The alleged violations included:

 

Anhydrous ammonia presents a significant health hazard because it is corrosive to the skin, eyes and lungs. High levels of exposure may lead to choking and death.

 

“It is critical that companies that handle dangerous chemicals comply with the safety requirements of the Clean Air Act,” said EPA Region 7 Enforcement and Compliance Assurance Division Director David Cozad. “EPA is committed to protecting communities from potentially catastrophic releases, particularly those communities disproportionately affected by environmental harm.”

 

EPA also identified the community surrounding the Hiland Dairy facility as a potentially sensitive area, because of exposures to toxic air releases, ozone, and proximity to a Superfund site. EPA is strengthening enforcement in overburdened communities to address disproportionately high and adverse human health or environmental effects of industrial operations on vulnerable populations.

 

The Clean Air Act’s Risk Management Plan Rule regulations require facilities that use regulated toxic and/or flammable substances to develop a Risk Management Plan, which identifies the potential effects of a chemical accident; identifies steps a facility is taking to prevent an accident; and spells out emergency response procedures should an accident occur. These plans provide valuable information to local fire, police, and emergency response personnel to prepare for and respond to chemical emergencies in their community.

 

EPA has found that many regulated facilities are not adequately managing the risks that they pose or ensuring the safety of their facilities in a way that is sufficient to protect surrounding communities. Approximately 150 catastrophic accidents occur per year among regulated facilities. These accidents result in fatalities, injuries, significant property damage, evacuations, sheltering in place, or environmental damage. Many more accidents with lesser effects also occur, demonstrating a clear risk posed by these facilities.

 

Reducing risks from accidental releases of hazardous substances at industrial and chemical facilities is a top priority for EPA, which identified this goal as one of its National Enforcement and Compliance Initiatives in 2024.

 

 

EPA will soon accept input on the next round of chemicals it may prioritize for risk evaluation under the Toxic Substances Control Act (TSCA). The agency describes prioritization as the first step under its authority to regulate chemicals that are currently on the market and in use. According to EPA, prioritization is intended to designate chemical substances as “high priority for immediate further risk evaluation” or low priority, which refers to substances the agency has determined do not currently warrant evaluation. The process to prioritize the next chemicals for risk evaluation under TSCA is set to begin in December 2024. EPA will hold two webinars on Zoom on Sept. 30 and Oct. 1 so stakeholders can learn about the 25 to 30 chemicals it is considering for the next round of prioritization. Of these chemicals, five may be selected.

 

The webinars will both provide an overview of the prioritization process and a list of the chemicals being considered. Any individual who is interested in providing oral comments during one of the webinars must email their name, affiliation, and contact information to EPA’s Sarah Soliman by Sept. 25. Links to register for these events and further details can be found on EPA’s website.

 

A 30-day public comment period to collect additional stakeholder feedback ahead of the December 2024 prioritization process will open on Oct. 1. EPA’s two webinars will cover details about the public comment period.

 

For more information, please refer to the EPA website.

 

 

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