San Francisco Frontiers - Trump eases curbs on planet-warming gases used in refrigerants

Republican Trump slammed the "ridiculous" rules introduced by his Democratic predecessor, president Joe Biden, on super-pollutants known as hydrofluorocarbons (HFCs).

Trump said the move would reduce the cost of living for US consumers. His approval ratings are plummeting as disruption to oil supplies from the Iran war drives up prices.

Speaking in the Oval Office, Trump said he was "officially terminating the Biden administration's ridiculous regulations imposing costly requirements on refrigerators and air conditioners."

"It's ridiculous, unnecessary and costly and actually makes the machinery worse," the billionaire president added.

Trump's administration is extending deadlines for grocery and other companies to phase out the use of HFCs under a 2023 law, the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) said in a statement.

It will also amend a 2024 act so that it exempts all road refrigerant appliances used to transport goods from new leak requirements for HFCs.

Surrounded by company executives as he sat at his Oval Office desk, Trump said there would be "no negative impact" from the changes and that there was "no environmental concern."

The Natural Resources Defense Council was among the environmental groups that begged to differ, calling the move "a lose-lose for the environment and the economy."

"It will harm consumers and the climate and reduce American competitiveness in the global markets emerging for environmentally safer refrigerants and technologies," said the organization's senior strategist for climate, David Doniger.

HFCs were introduced in the 1990s to replace chemicals that had been found to erode the ozone layer, but turned out to be catastrophic for global warming.

- Savings questionable -

EPA chief Lee Zeldin said the actions put the brakes on a "rushed, frantic, reckless sprint" by previous administrations to phase out HFCs.

The agency said the move would save $2.4 billion in regulations on the greenhouse gases that firms would pass on to consumers.

But the Air-Conditioning, Heating, and Refrigeration Institute (AHRI) said in a statement that in fact the move might cause prices to jump.

"This rule works against basic supply and demand," said Stephen Yurek, head of the group. "By extending the compliance deadline, the EPA is maintaining and even increasing demand in the market for existing refrigerants while supply continues to fall under the AIM Act."

"Instead of falling, refrigerant prices are likely to rise, resulting in higher service costs, and higher costs for consumers."

He said the Biden-era rules only applied to new equipment, and did not require replacing refrigeration already in existence.

Food economist David Ortega said "there's very little here that would actually help lower grocery prices" and it's "not very likely" that consumers will see their food bills drop.

The Michigan State University professor told AFP that along with injecting uncertainty into the industry, continued weather extremes due to climate change impact agricultural production and "can really just exacerbate food inflation over the long run."

The current White House agenda is "not one that I would say is consistent with lowering food prices or food price inflation," Ortega added, citing the impacts of trade policy battles, strict immigration curbs causing labor shortages and higher fuel costs due to the Iran war as issues that contribute to grocery expense hikes.

The cost of living promises to be the key issue in crucial US midterm elections in November in which Trump's Republicans will be fighting to keep control of Congress.

A New York Times/Siena poll released Monday put Trump's approval rating at 37 percent, the lowest of his second term, with 64 percent of voters saying the Iran war was a mistake and the same proportion disapproving of his handling of the economy.

J.Martinez--SFF