Zeldin says EPA providing 'flexibility' by loosening rules for pollutants used in grocery refrigeration

Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) Lee Zeldin said Sunday that the Trump administration is providing “flexibility” to businesses by loosening restrictions on the use of super-polluting greenhouse gases in commercial refrigeration. 

Under the new EPA rule unveiled on Wednesday, supermarkets can use hydrofluorocarbons that are up to 1,400 times as potent as carbon dioxide until 2032. The rule also eased restrictions on cold storage warehouses, semiconductor manufacturing and refrigerated transportation. 

Zeldin said on CNN’s “State of the Union” that the EPA’s “focus” is on implementing the American Innovation and Manufacturing (AIM) Act, a bipartisan law that President Trump signed in 2020 and intended to phase down the use of the aforementioned refrigerants.

“The last administration went with a very aggressive timetable, more aggressive than what the law had required and after members of Congress had debated, deliberated on what would be the right phase-out,” he told host Jake Tapper.

As a result, Zeldin said, refrigeration costs have risen for smaller groceries — particularly when they need to replace a broken part. 

“If you have a part that goes down, if you need something serviced, if you need a supply, we believe that you should just be able to fix that part, rather than being required to get a whole new system,” he said.

“That’s really been the main economic impact that we have been concerned with, and we’re trying to provide that flexibility, while still following our statutory obligation under this law and implementing the AIM Act responsibly.”

Under the Biden-era EPA’s rule, certain sectors could only use hydrofluorocarbons that are no more than 150, 300 or 700 times as powerful as carbon dioxide. Hydrofluorocarbons replaced ozone-depleting chlorofluorocarbons, but they are still highly potent greenhouse gases that contribute significantly to climate change. 

Zeldin said Sunday that the latest EPA actions will save businesses roughly $2.4 billion. The EPA said in a press release earlier this week that those savings will “flow directly to consumers.”

But Stephen Yurek, the president CEO of the Air-Conditioning, Heating and Refrigeration Institute, said that the move could actually raise costs.

“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. So, instead of falling, refrigerant prices are likely to rise, resulting in higher service costs, and higher costs for consumers,” Yurek said Wednesday in a written statement.