Reducing the climate impact of black market HFC gases

**HFC greenhouse gases - the biggest black market you've never heard of** The UK and Europe's climate goals are being undermined by a thriving black market for HFCs (hydrofluorocarbons), which enter the EU under the radar of the F-gas quota system. Our stakeholder's research from July 2020 suggests the illicit trade volume in HFCs could be as high as a third of the legal EU market (equivalent to at least ?850million) and accounting for 34 million tonnes of CO2 equivalent greenhouse gases. That is the CO2 equivalent to 8.7 coal fired power stations running for a year, 5,756,402 homes electricity use for a year, or 3,388,107 car trips around the entire circumference of the earth! On it's own, this black market would be the EU's 20th largest country in terms of CO? impact - ahead of the entire national emissions of Estonia - if the global warming potential of illegal HFCs were measured alongside the EU's 27 member states. **You're not the only one who's not aware of this problem** Illicit trade is the biggest source of funding for organised criminal gangs, and is a cross-border, international challenge. Unfortunately, right now, enforcement of the regulations preventing illegal trade in HFCs are virtually non-existent. National law enforcement priorities are elsewhere, and it is hard to tell one green canister from another to the untrained eye. That makes this illegal HFC business very low risk, very profitable, and far more lucrative and attractive than drug dealing and human trafficking. Not only that, but because illicit HFCs can "unwittingly" find their way into buildings, air conditioning (building, cars and transport) systems, refrigeration systems and other light industry, efforts to switch to Clean Energy and meet Net Zero targets can be undermined and completely negated. **Solution to detect, enforce and safely eliminate illegally traded HFCs** Vistalworks is proposing a technology solution that automatically detects illegal sellers of HFCs, provides jurisdictionally appropriate leads to enforcement agencies, along with the necessary field kit to help ordinary officers detect illicit products when they find them, and collects and stores case data in a way that will support successful prosecutions. This solution delivers social good at a nationally and globally significant levels, potentially curbing the significant levels of climate-related emissions caused by illicit HFCs by 170,000 tonnes of CO2 a year.