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The EPA, the Environment, and the Service Industry
A letter from David Debien
When one looks at this, the title of the article, several inclinations arrive to mind. This must be a bashing of the EPA. Or maybe it ridicules the environmentalist "Whackos" as some would call them. It will do neither. As one of the first major victims of the environment, I can state from experience the actual effects of no regulation of my personal life history.
Long before the EPA became a household word, my family was involved in the fishing industry. We were three generations of Lake Erie fresh water fishermen. My great grandfather was working in the lake at a time when you could drink the water without fear. By the time my father's business failed in 1966, attempts to regulate the industrial contamination were just beginning. Today, our family has been scattered to the winds of change and the family structure no longer exists because of this pollution. Ironically, my father's vein attempts in 1954 to cry out for help were treated, as today's environmentalist whacko would be seen. He was totally ignored.
In recent times, we have seen the data to confuse an issue that is of great concern to us all. Are chlorofluorocarbons damaging the atmosphere or is this the greatest hoax since the Flat World Society? It is not an easy answer for any side to state emphatically. There are support systems on both fronts. As one who works in the field of refrigerant usage daily, we encounter the issue with great concern. The recent issuance of an over 75 page final EPA document with regard to the environment has not settled much. It has made a valiant effort to define the scope of the issue with much detail.
The EPA's approach to the problem of CFC's show the absolute power of the government that should scare us all. In wake of the Oklahoma City incident, we are aware of the growing concern and fear of government. The manner, in which the government approached the CFC problem, is indicative of the trepidation that they place over our daily business operations.
In the mid 1980's it was discovered that CFC's might be damaging the environment. Industry wide rumors abound that since the patent's on refrigerants had run out long ago, there was a vested interest in creating a market for a whole new line of refrigerants. Worldwide use of process applications would increase and demand could be created with limited monopoly of the main components. Just like the microprocessor is a must for a computer, so is a refrigerant a must in many process applications. The controversy gained ground as time processed. It was discovered that chlorine molecules entrapped in the molecular structure of the CFC did indeed destroy the ozone. Million of tons of chlorine are dumped into the atmosphere daily by active volcanoes and their effect versus CFC is unclear. It has been stated that more chlorine was dumped by the explosion of Mount Pinatubo than all the chlorine from the CFC's since their inception. The picture is fuzzy at best.
In 1987, the G-7 nations signed the Montreal Protocol to eliminate or reduce the so-called worst offenders. These refrigerants are mainly R-12, R-11, R-113, R-500, R-502 and several other lesser-known compounds. Refrigerants to be banned in these countries were used for cooling our autos, freezers, and even fire protection. They have been replaced by an aggressive program aimed at a new market for environmentally safer refrigerants. However, only in the G-7 nations will this ban take place. Developing countries will still produce the ozone damaging products. Since these countries are less developed, the chance that they will use any compound responsibly is slim at best. In my travels to foreign countries, the competence of technical staff is not up to any standard and never will be.
The government, in its approach, was typical of a problem that was handled in the worst way. Prior to this crisis, there was little government intervention in our industry. The field was largely regulated by guidelines of the ASHRAE society. This worked well and was a typical example of private industry regulating itself to a great degree.
Most of us are unaware that prior to this CFC crisis, our government routinely vented several hundred thousand tons of CFC's yearly. These were used to wash down military planes and vented to the atmosphere. All of a sudden, the whole industry was about to undergo the change from little or no regulation to almost total regulation. It was a dramatic change and done in a way that illustrates how the term "jack booted thug" is understood by all who feel kicked about by government heavy handedness.
Our government decided that it was in the best interest of the United States to stop venting refrigerants into the atmosphere. While a noble goal, it is unlikely matched by worldwide acceptance or compliance. However, here it is, the law of the land. How did they get industry to change? They passed laws that make it illegal to intentionally vent refrigerant to the atmosphere. It must be recovered and sent back to the factory.
The recovery machine industry exploded! Hundreds, if not thousands, of companies saw a goldmine in making the machines to recover refrigerant. The law mandated the use of a technology before the machines made had any history or reliability that was tractable. Few manufacturers were successful and only a handful of company's service today, once the dust settled. The machines purchased then are now somewhat obsolete. The process that changed the industry was poorly thought out and vigorously administered through fear along. Most of us in the business did not know from day to day what the law was or how we were to comply with the regulation. Confusion reigned today on an industry that is vital to our every day life and our future.
The EPA initially announced that huge rewards would be grated to anyone reporting violators. These fines of up to $25,000.00 per occurrence with rewards of $10,000.00 to the person reporting, have put alarm and distrust in an industry where none existed. The "BIG BROTHER" approach was demonstrated to me personally when one of my employees recently turned on a unit at a house where we were working to replace the system. When the breaker was turned on, the compressor blew the refrigerant charge due to a short in the motor. The customer was on the phone to the EPA within 5 minutes. Although no violation had taken place, the action sent shivers in all directions.
The EPA also has made it difficult to comply with the law by making a law that's intent is its main objective, while its enforcement remains a dreaded fear. When any refrigerant is taxed, it needs little or no analysis to see that it will not survive. The current tax on refrigerant R-12 has raised the price to ten times its cost in 1986. The economics alone will doom the product. No government form is required to implement this policy. While the regulations address the quality of refrigerants handled and recycled, inefficient manufacturing processes and designs are completely ignored. Manufacturers are not made to produce products that have long life and avoid failure. This is illustrated in the design of a basic cooling coil. Three different metals are in most products: steel, copper and aluminum. When cooled and heated along with the moisture electrolysis takes place causing the products to fail and leak refrigerant. Technology exists to make cooling coils that last nearly indefinitely, but that would reduce the replacement market. Everyone knows this, yet no regulation exists to force manufactures to improve their product.
Likewise, an EPA certified technician needs to know little about his skills to be qualified. In a rapidly changing market place, refrigerant education is an ongoing process. It is time that the skill level is mandated upward and continuing education is mandatory. Fifty hours a year are needed to keep up with this and none is required. Only the true professional will continue to educate themselves. The rest will just make a living because the demand for services is high. The majority of compressor failures are caused by problems related to poor service or application and failure of the refrigerant cycle. Much of the refrigerant vented in the future will be because of misapplication and misunderstanding of the process that makes a system perform correctly. In a market driven by low bidders, standard must be established. This is the government's most essential duty and on that one, they get a failing grade. Many industry leader tout the merits of the EPA's effort because criticism of this is politically unwise. It's a game of bliss ignorance that does not rock the boat. The real needs are to educate the public, educate the EPA, and educate the technicians in the industry. There will be a sever shortage in the years to come and little is being done to encourage the increase in professionalism that is lacking. Some like it this way because it makes the market more difficult to enter.
Few if any laws are required to accomplish where the goals of the government should be aimed. If there were a more punitive way to handle this problem, the EPA would have come up with the method. Rules for handling refrigerants have existed now for some time and they have created bureaucracy when none existed. They have created fear where cooperation was needed. They have changed nothing long term that would not have changed without their involvement. If anything, they have made the case for less government absolutely clear.
A progressive tax was placed on some refrigerants several years ago. Even though this tax has raised the price of refrigerant tenfold, 60,000 commercial buildings still used the CFC's. As these units fail, they will be replaced with equipment that is friendlier to the pocketbook. Due to high taxes, there is a looming underground economy for banned refrigerants, especially R-12. Recent capture of thousands of pounds of R-12 at the border give rise to the analogy of pot smuggling. R-12 robberies at gunpoint have already taken place in several states. Wholesalers must handle refrigerant to protect not only from the EPA, but also internal theft. R-12 presently selling at $8.00 per pound wholesale is predicated to rise to $100.00 a pound shortly. This artificial crisis was avoidable by simply using common sense, but it did have the effect of changing the market demand for the product.
The industry has embraced the EPA's rule by and large because it keeps the less qualified out of the market and makes it easier to justify higher prices for service. Few speak out against the heavy handedness that lurks in every corner. Like the IRS, the EPA treats you as guilty by association unless you can prove otherwise.
The solution is a simple one. To Reduce emissions of unwanted refrigerants, laws to eliminate the production of equipment using CFC's could be accomplished easily. Manufacturers could be made to make their products more reliable. Licensing requiring continuing education and testing would improve the industry competency. System designs that encourage refrigerant capture could be improved. Heightened public awareness through television would be effective. Instead, we will implement conditions that will require unnecessary regulation; cost and burdens that make all of us realize the government is a foe not a friend.
Change must come in a different form if the true results are to be obtained. As it stands now, the EPA has made criminals of all who handle refrigerants. Guilt by association is the implied acclivity of the law.
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