African ministers of the environment at the 17th session of the African Ministerial Conference on the Environment called for fast action on short lived climate pollutants, methane, tropospheric ozone, black carbon and HFCs for climate action, also urging for rapid ratification of the Montreal Protocol's Kigali Amendment.

More than 50 nations agreed today to a declaration to promote innovation of energy efficient solutions and technologies in the development of so-called “cold chains”, cooling and refrigeration, to reduce food loss and waste, and curb resulting powerful greenhouse gas methane and HFC emissions.

Sen. John Kennedy (R-La.) and Sen. Tom Carper (D-Del.) introduced legislation today phasing down the production and consumption of HFCs, potent greenhouse gases widely used in refrigerators and ACs. The bill has drawn significant bipartisan support, given the broad consensus among U.S. manufacturers seeking to capitalize on a transition to low-GWP HFCs.

Phasing down HFCs has the potential to avoid up to 0.5°C of warming by the end of the century. Simultaneous improvements in energy efficiency in refrigeration and AC equipment during the transition to low-GWP alternative refrigerants can potentially double the climate benefits of the HFC phasedown of the Kigali Amendment.