Emissions from our refrigeration systems make up a large part - nearly 30% - of our operational greenhouse gas emissions. We are committed to significantly reducing refrigerant emissions as part of our goal to reduce overall emissions by 20% per square meter by 2020. However, as we do this we face two significant challenges:
- Refrigerants that are currently cost effective and widely available for retail installations - hydrofluorocarbons (HFCs) - are potent greenhouse gases.
- As we work toward the Montreal Protocol requirements to eliminate Ozone Depleting Substances (ODS) - in this case hydrochlorofluorocarbons (HCFCs) - we have actually introduced more HFCs into our store network during this transition phase.
Since 2008, our carbon dioxide (CO2) equivalent emissions from refrigerants have increased by 12% per square meter. In 2008, they were 169 kgCO2e/m2 and increased to 178 kgCO2e/m2 in 2009 and to 189 kgCO2e/m2 in 2010.
Most of this increase is due to switching from HCFCs (ozone-depleting) to HFCs (ozone-friendly) as part of our work to comply with the Montreal Protocol. In line with European Union legislation, Delhaize Belgium invested EUR 1 million to convert 35 systems in 23 stores from R22 (an HCFC) to HFCs, while Mega Image and Alfa Beta also continued their conversion programs. In the U.S. , Food Lion invested USD 3 million to convert 139 systems from HCFCs to HFCs in 63 stores. This work brought our total percentage of ozone-friendly refrigerants to 42% in 2010, up from 38% in 2009.
Reducing leaks and improved designs
To combat the rise in refrigerant emissions, a first - and cost-effective - action is to reduce leaks in our refrigeration systems. In 2010, Delhaize Belgium reinforced programs with its external refrigerant technicians to reduce leaks and Hannaford expanded monitoring for early identification and repair of refrigerant leaks at 35 stores. Alfa Beta technical team members also participated in “REAL-SKILLS-EUROPE”, a European Union program to cooperate and exchange knowledge on new practices for managing refrigerant leaks.
A second approach to reducing refrigerant emissions is to design and build refrigeration systems that have less refrigerants in them. Food Lion and Delhaize Belgium have tested several systems that use a smaller amount of HFC refrigerant along with secondary fluids, such as propylene glycol/water, to provide refrigeration to the display cases and walk-in coolers and freezers. Delhaize Belgium has also found that energy efficiency measures for refrigerated cases, such as installing doors, using LED lighting and choosing equipment that runs on less power, are also reducing the amount of refrigerant required. Hannaford’s standard system uses a secondary fluid on the high-temperature side, which enables a significant amount of savings on heating fuel due to heat recovery from the refrigeration systems.
Using ‘natural refrigerants’
Beyond leak management and using less refrigerants, another avenue for reducing refrigerant emissions is a switch from HFCs to very low-Global Warming Potential (GWP) options, the so-called ‘natural refrigerants.’ We have already applied CO2, the most common natural refrigerant used in retail installations, in stores across the Group, including nine stores at Delhaize Belgium.
Alfa Beta’s Green Store, which opened in 2010, was the first supermarket in Greece to use CO2. Food Lion’s store in Conyers, Georgia earned a Gold certification from the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency’s GreenChill Advanced Refrigeration Partnership for its cascade CO2 system.
We will continue to work with manufacturers, contractors and associates to reduce leaks from our systems, design and build innovative systems to reduce the amount of refrigerant required as well as switch, where possible, to refrigerants with a lower GWP. We will also continue to use natural refrigerants where practical and will work with the industry to encourage these systems to become more cost effective and widely available. As a member of the Consumer Goods Forum, we have pledged to begin phasing out HFCs in new installations starting in 2015. We expect our trend of increasing refrigerant emissions will reverse in coming years due to these measures.
What do our stakeholders think about it?
Refrigerant leaks add to some of the most pressing environmental challenges we face today: depletion of the earth's ozone layer and climate change. We encourage food retailers to implement a refrigerant management plan to transition to environmentally-friendlier refrigerants, reduce the amount of refrigerant used, and continually reduce refrigerant leaks. These actions help the environment, while they help the company's bottom line.
Drusilla Hufford, U.S. EPA's Stratospheric Protection Division Director
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