Recent heatwaves have led to thousands of deaths and captured headlines as we enter a dangerous new era of extreme heat contributing to dangerous wildfires and harming agriculture production. Yet, one of the quickest and most sought-after solutions to deal with extreme temperature, air conditioners, could rapidly increase global warming.
This spike in deadly temperatures has experts predicting greater demand for air conditioning. Currently the world has roughly 3.6 billion units operating globally, but it is estimated by 2050 the world will need as many as 14 billion total air conditioning units, a 289% increase. While this increase is certainly justified in terms of the immediate relief air conditioning can provide, it could also be a climate disaster.
Read: U.K. weather officials drew a scary heatwave map for 2050 — this week it came true, 28 years early
And: Humans are to blame for the extreme weather that broiled London — here’s just how much
This is due to gases called hydrofluorocarbons (HFCs), which are a group of industrial chemicals primarily used for refrigeration and cooling, including in most air conditioners.
HFCs are a major climate concern due to their high global warming potential (GWP). GWP is a measure of the warming potential of 1 ton of a gas, once emitted into the atmosphere, relative to 1 ton of carbon dioxide (CO2) in a given period of time.
The HFCs in your air conditioner could have a GWP score well over 3,000. This means HFCs heat the planet 1,000s of times more than CO2.
“ Introducing billions more appliances over the next decade could easily push current climate goals out of reach. ”
These high-GWP substances are also found within foam insulation and refrigeration appliances, which will also be increasingly called upon with extreme temperatures. These substances have been leaking for decades,contributing to nearly 10% of global warming emissions. It is expected their emissions will rise by a staggering 90% from 2017 levels by 2050. Introducing billions of more appliances over the next decade could easily push current climate goals out of reach.
The good news is there are appliances ready for market now that use much lower GWP compounds – some representing more than a 1,000% reduction from what is typically used in appliances currently. Legislation passed last year that will reduce the production and consumption of HFCs in the U.S. by 85% over the next 15 years. Both efforts will, over time, move the market towards low-GWP appliances.
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