Unlawful intentional releases of refrigerant

[zolar1]

The local scrap yards do not require scrappers to prove where the refrigerant from domestic refrigerators went to when the recycled refrigerators are dropped off for salvage.

The only requirement the scrap yard has is the compressord must be removed prior to dropping the items off.

Many times, scrappers I meet talk about 'popping the lines' in their truck (and other places), & driving around for 1/2 hour till the '*****' is all out. Every appliance store I've been to (except one) have people talking about just cutting the lines & letting the refrigerant out. A customer asked one guy I know to cut the lines so the customer could get rid of an old fridge. He said no, & gave the guy my number. I gave him a price for removal, & the guy slammed the phone down!

Surely, the EPA can't be that naive' to think that all the refrigerants were recovered properly prior to disposal of the appliance, & turned in for recycling.

The scrap yards here are the one's to blame.

Your thoughts?

[herefishy]

The local landfill has a contract with an HVACR contractor to reclaim refrigerant in disposed appliances. The landfill charges about $50.00 for the disposal. About once a month the contractor goes out to the site and "does the deed", then the machines are set to their grave.

Customers call me often to dispose of fridges. I give them my price, then refer them to the landfill.

In assuring compliance, such contracts for reclamation services could be required for such disposal facilities or operators. But personally I don't care for more gubbermint interference, and think that the federal payroll should be cut by 50%, and .......

..... Don't get me started..

[zolar1]

Why pay all that money for training, licensing, and equipment if the EPA won't enforce the international laws?

I wasn't advocating more big brother, just wondered why big brother is sleeping so much, especially since we pay the salaries.

Dayton Ohio has mandatory refrigerant reclamation. Dayton junk yards won't take a fridge without a sticker certifying where the refrigerant went.

A good arguement for the abolishment of the Montreal Protocol would be the severe inability to adequately enforce the laws.

The other side, a good arguement would be to bust the illegal ***** releasers (ie scrappers) fine them, and help reduce the national debt......or at least lower the taxes

[Peter Croxall]

Hi Folks,

It's slightly different over this side of the pond......

when a fridge is srapped, it is taken to the council dump where it is placed on the fridge mountain........there are several of these, around the country...some as high as the Empire State building, it has been suggested that these be turned into ski slopes during the winter, but alas, we haven't had much snow over the last couple of years

Now, reclaiming the gas is the problem over here...........

it seems that, according to a European directive, not only the gas has to be reclaimed from the pipework, (no problem there), but also from the foam insulation in the lining...........

.AHA "here be the rub"

It seems that there are only a couple of machines that can do this.....and...suprise, suprise they are in Germany.............Also they cost a couple of Zillion Dollars apiece.........So several companies...(smelling a fortune to be made no doubt) are fighting to obtain a couple of these Hence the saying


"THERE'S MONEY IN THEM THAR HILLS"

[Andy]

Hi,
also we have a duty of care under coshh regulations so all gas and oil recovered must be documented to ensure full traceability, basically to keep people from blowing the gas off and tipping the oil into the drain.
Regards. Andy.

[frank]

Good point about the Oil reclaim Andy - where do you take it to for disposal?

Frank

[Andy]

Hi, Frank
there is a number of ways you can get rid of the oil. Perhaps not the correct of ethical way you can bring it to the council skip yard and make the council workers right you a hand over document. Or yoy can phone up your friendly oil recycler (we over here use Irish Wastes) who will collect it if you have sufficent quanities.
I have worked for firms in the past who just brought it to the council and never told them why their 200 gallon oil tank was foaming.
Fun at the time but hardly the correct proceedure as the oil should be burned off or recycled to remove the ***** gas.
Regards. Andy.