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Deutsche Umwelthilfe calls for the use of CO2 |
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The Managing Director of the influential German environmental NGO challenged German carmakers during a TV discussion last week, demanding that they should stick to their commitment to promote the use of the environmentally safe refrigerant CO2.
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2007-03-20
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Calling for a leadership ...
"We are now using a fluid we know is 1,400 times more harmful for the environment as a refrigerant than CO2. We already have an alternative which the automotive industry committed itself to use: the refrigerant CO2," said Jürgen Resch, Managing Director of the Deutsche Umwelthilfe, during a German TV discussion last Thursday.
The round of talks "With full throttle into climate protection" focused on measures to combat climate change, exploring at the same time promising technologies that would lead to both environmental and economic benefits for the luxury-class dominated German car industry.
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Resch, mentioning specifically mobile air conditioning as a key tool to reduce fuel consumption as well as greenhouse gas emissions, criticized German carmakers for their lack of clear leadership when it comes to promoting the coolant CO2: "And once again a new battle: The auto industry wants to use the current refrigerant – this R134a – as long as possible. What we need is a radical rethinking. We need a clear decision from the German car industry to take the lead in this development and to compete with French and Japanese manufacturers for the most efficient vehicle technologies."
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... the German carmakers promised to take
Resch's appeal is based on continuous declarations by the German Association of the Automotive Industry (VDA) to invest in the research and use of CO2 as an alternative to high Global Warming refrigerants. Given that the EU will phase out the current fluid HFC-134a, the VDA declared in its 2005 Annual Report: "It is likely that all new model series introduced to the market from 2011 onwards will only be permitted to use refrigerant with a GWP (Global Warming Potential) of less than 150. This will mean the introduction of CO2 air conditioning systems in all cases."
One year earlier the organization stated: "The German automotive industry is a world-leading developer of air-conditioning systems based on alternative refrigerants. VDA has advocated the introduction of such refrigerants and is a leading promoter of research in this area."
Similar messages could be found in every Annual Report, starting from 2002 on.
Background
In the meantime, the German Environment Minister has blamed the German car industry of total failure in the field of climate protection. In a leading economic weekly, he certified the industry to "be technically not on a level with the ball" regarding climate protection, adding that he did not understand why carmakers let economic opportunities pass by.
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More information:
› Video Live Stream "With full throttle into climate
protection", Phoenix, 15 March
Relevant DUH quote (German) at 25:27 min
 VDA Annual Reports 2004 / 2005 - Extracts (28 KB)
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