The U.S. will officially phase down HFCs, gases trapping 1,000x more heat than CO2

Six years after the United States helped negotiate a global climate treaty that would formally phase down the use of hydrofluorocarbons, or HFCs, the Senate is moving to approve it.

The Senate will vote this week on an amendment to the Montreal Protocol that aims to drastically reduce the use of compounds.

HFCs are thousands of times more damaging to the atmosphere than carbon dioxide and need to be dealt with as soon as possible.

The 1980s and 1990s saw the adoption of these compounds to replace chlorofluorocarbons, which damage the ozone layer. HFCs became one of the most potent greenhouse gases.

According to the Environmental Protection Agency, if HFCs are phased out around the globe, warming could be cut in half by the end of the century. Scientists said that half a degree can make a big difference in limiting warming to 1.5 degrees Celsius.

The U.S. is already taking steps to eliminate HFCs

Environmentalists, manufacturers and politicians tend to agree on reducing HFCs.

"Stakeholders, from business to environmental groups, have urged the Senate to approve the strongly bipartisan amendment," said Stephen Yurek, president and CEO of the Air-Conditioning, heating, and Refrigeration Institute.

Democrats and climate activists praise the phase-down as a good climate policy, while Republicans think it's a bad one. The United States was involved in the negotiation of the terms of the amendment but never voted on it. According to the UN, more than 130 countries have signed on.

The amendment's provisions have already been followed by the United States. The AIM Act was part of an appropriations bill. The EPA has the power to enforce a phase-down of 85% of the production and consumption of HFCs.

The Alliance for Responsible Atmospheric Policy said that the AIM Act is important, but that it's still necessary for American companies to be competitive.

An enhancement of your market access is what it is. The executive director said that the industries were very competitive on a global level.

The amendment would increase U.S. manufacturing jobs by 33,000, increase exports by $5 billion, reduce imports by $7 billion, and improve the balance of trade.

There is evidence that commitments to reduce the use of HFCs are not being followed. If China and India had accurately reported their reductions of HFC-23, atmospheric levels of the most potent HFC, HFC-23, would have been much lower.