WASHINGTON — New Era Group Inc. announced it has filed an appeal with the U.S. Court of Appeals for the D.C. Circuit over a ruling issued in mid-2013 allowing the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) to continue to allow production and importation of hydrochlorofluorocarbon (HCFC)-22 refrigerant. That ruling came as the result of a suit filed that year regarding the EPA allowing 64 million pounds of new R-22 in 2013.

New Era is a Washington, D.C.-based consultancy firm that represents several refrigerant reclaimers, alternative refrigerant manufacturers, and refrigerant distributors who are trying to immediately end all allowances of new and imported R-22.

According to New Era president Peter Williams, New Era asked the EPA to reconsider the 2013 regulations in June 2013, when it became apparent that EPA’s findings regarding HCFC-22 inventory and reclamation capacity were based on information the agency had not disclosed or made available for public review. It is the EPA’s denial of that request for reconsideration that is now before the D.C. Court of Appeals.

The appeal, filed April 11, is not related to an April 4 press release that introduced New Era’s intention to sue the EPA in June or July 2014 unless EPA can explain why it is allowing 51 million pounds of R-22 to be produced in 2014.

Publication date: 4/28/2014 

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