Rightly heralded in recent media reports around the world, the greenhouse gas deal that was agreed to in Rwanda in October 2016 will have far-reaching consequences for all industry sectors, including the maritime trade. The use of reliable refrigeration recovery packages has now become even more imperative than it was in the past, a fact that shouldn’t go unnoticed among owners and operators throughout the world.

Rwanda’s capital city Kigali played host to the negotiations, and 197 nations were represented at the talks. Much to the relief of environmentalists across the globe, the final agreement is legally binding. It specifies the reduction of hydrofluorocarbon (HFC) gases, which are capable of being 10,000 times more powerful than carbon dioxide. The benefits to the planet really cannot be overestimated.

In the marine industry, the utilisation of refrigeration recovery packages has become even more crucial now, thanks to this game-changing agreement. The eazy Refrigeration Recovery/Recycling Package from Eazychem is an extremely efficient utility, and it ensures the prevention of ozone-depleting gases from entering the atmosphere during any maintenance or repair operations to refrigeration equipment.

A binding agreement by almost all countries of the world

While a number of the more developed nations had already started to reduce their use of HFCs recently, the fact that further reductions by all nations is now legally binding is perhaps the most significant development of all. The specifics of the agreement are that:

• Developed nations have committed to cut HFC use by 10% by 2019
• The same nations pledge to cut usage by 85% by 2036
• Developing countries will freeze usage by either 2024 or 2028
• These nations will then reduce HFC use gradually after that

Even small reductions in HFC usage can be significant. An immediate cut by a negligible amount is thought to be enough to reduce climate change-related temperature rises by 0.5 degrees Celsius by 2100. In both developed and undeveloped nations around the world, the impetus to do something positive about refrigerants is gaining momentum.

Refrigeration recovery packages are more important than ever before

In addition to preventing the release of harmful gases, the eazy Refrigeration/Recovery Package will also help to clean contaminants such as oil and moisture. Maintaining, servicing and repairing air conditioning units and refrigeration equipment on board vessels is now a safer, more secure and more environmentally friendly process than it was.

The Kigali meeting was a hugely important development. It was held as part of the summit of the United Nations Environment Programme, and the resultant agreement forms an official amendment to the 1989 Montreal Protocol on Substances that Deplete the Ozone Layer. It’s worth noting that the same rules which apply on land do so at sea as well.