What are HFCs and what’s their role in climate change? | Sustainable LA Grand Challenge

October 17, 2016

Clouds above land. — About 70 percent of Earth is covered by clouds at any given moment. Photo by NOAA/FLICKR.

An agreement signed in Kigali, Rwanda last Saturday mandates an 85 percent reduction of a class of greenhouse gases called HFCs (hydrofluorocarbons) in wealthy nations—including the United States—by 2036. Edward Parson, a professor of environmental law at UCLA’s Emmett Institute on Climate Change and the Environment, identifies the deal as “a step forward,” but maintains that CO2 reduction still represents a more pressing concern.