The Real Estate Board of New York to The Environmental Protection Agency’s Proposed Rule on Phasedown of Hydrofluorocarbons (EPA–HQ–OAR–2021–0643)

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We appreciate the opportunity to submit comments on the Environmental Protection Agency's (EPA) draft rule that would postpone the phase out of certain refrigerants from January 1, 2026, to January 1, 2027.

Refrigerants are chemicals that are used in refrigerators, HVAC systems, individual air conditioners, and other equipment used to cool and heat spaces, among other things. There are a wide range of chemicals that work as refrigerants, and different refrigerants have different advantages and disadvantages.

Some refrigerants have a high "global warming potential" because, if they escape equipment, they last a long time in the atmosphere where they trap heat. The EPA has promulgated rules restricting the future installation of certain HVAC equipment that uses these refrigerants. Of particular interest for this submission, existing rules would bar the installation of Variable Refrigerant Flow (VRF) systems in buildings that use these refrigerants starting on January 1, 2026. The proposed rule that is the subject of this comment would postpone that ban until January 1, 2027.

While extending the deadline to January 1, 2027, is appropriate, we believe additional time will be needed to provide building owners and developers with time to comply without significantly disrupting existing projects. This is particularly necessary for larger in-process development projects that take many years to develop and build and, for the following reasons, will face the most significant challenges complying by January 1, 2027.

VRF systems are highly efficient systems that cool and heat buildings. However, they are more difficult to replace than other pre-packaged refrigerant units as they have multiple components that need to be installed on site and then require refrigerant piping to be installed to connect the components. They also must undergo several tests before they are operational.

In addition, VRF systems using low global warming potential refrigerants, such as A2Ls, are not readily available from manufacturers, and will not be until at least June of 2026. These systems will also require additional protections due to the flammability of A2Ls. As a consequence, these systems will require re-design of components of the building and re-submission of new plans to the local buildings department. In New York City, this process is guaranteed to take several months, if not years, to complete.

For these reasons, a one year extension at this time is not sufficient for those who have designed and are constructing buildings with VRF systems using currently allowed refrigerants to install that equipment before the proposed ban kicks in. Therefore, we recommend that the proposed rule be modified to extend the date to January 1, 2028 rather than January 1, 2027.

Thank you for this opportunity to comment on this proposed rule.