Hydrofluorocarbons (HFCs) are some of the most powerful greenhouse gases emitted by the federal government. The Global Warming Potentials (GWPs) vary substantially, but they can get quite high: the GWP of HFC-23 (CHF3 or Fluoroform) is a whopping 14,800. That means a single pound of HFC-23 emitted into the atmosphere has about the same global warming impact as 7 tons of CO2! For this reason, HFC reduction is a strong step towards reducing GHG emissions for any federal agency!

HFCs have many uses but are most commonly used as refrigerants. HFCs became popular for this usage after it was found that chlorofluorocarbons (CFCs) depleted the ozone layer in the upper atmosphere. HFCs are considered less harmful to the environment, but they are still quite damaging. The EPA's Significant New Alternatives Policy (SNAP) Program has identified hundreds of alternative chemicals which can fill many of the functions currently filled by HFCs. These alternatives should be used wherever possible to reduce environmental harm.

More information about HFCs, SNAP, and federal guidelines on the subject can be found on this extremely helpful EPA webpage. The item on this page we'd like to specifically highlight is the HFC Emissions Accounting Tool two-thirds of the way down the page. This macro-enabled Excel spreadsheet (.xlsm) walks you through the estimation of HFC emissions. As inputs, it will accept as much or as little information as you have available about your facilities and equipment. As outputs, it yields a list of the HFCs included in the FEMP workbook, with total quantities emitted for each. You can copy these numbers straight into the CFT, where they'll be included in all of your reports, dashboards, and FEMP Exports.

This is our first post about government sustainability resources, but there will be more to come! If you have a resource you'd like to highlight on the CFT blog, let us know at carbonfootprint@gsa.gov!