§ Mr. BradyTo ask the Secretary of State for the Environment, Transport and the Regions on what evidence his Department has based its view that HFCs are not sustainable technology in the long term. [127002]
§ Mr. MeacherThe Government's draft climate change programme includes a new policy statement on HFCs because they are powerful greenhouse gases and are included in the basket of gases controlled under the Kyoto Protocol. We recognise that HFCs are necessary replacements for ozone-depleting substances in some applications, but we are concerned that emissions from these sources are forecast to grow strongly in the near future. This trend is unsustainable in the longer term and action needs to be taken to limit the projected growth.
Our position would allow HFCs to continue to be used where they are necessary, but we recognise that the successful phase out of ozone-depleting substances is being achieved with a range of technologies. We believe that continued technological developments will mean that HFCs may eventually be able to be replaced in 370W applications where they are currently necessary. We therefore believe it is right to give a clear signal to industry and users to look closely at these alternatives and to select those that are more environmentally acceptable where they do exist. Of course safety, technical feasibility and cost effectiveness should be taken into account before investment decisions are taken.
§ Mr. BradyTo ask the Secretary of State for the Environment, Transport and the Regions if he will list the occasions in the last 12 months on which Ministers in his Department have met(a) Greenpeace, (b) other environmental groups and (c) representatives of the refrigeration industry to discuss the future use of HFCs. [126976]
§ Mr. MeacherThere have been no meetings between DETR Ministers and any group to discuss specifically the future use of HFCs. However, in January I met representatives from Greenpeace and EnvirosMarch consultancy to discuss the report "UK Emissions of HFCs, PFCs and SF6 and Potential Emission Reduction Options" which was prepared for the DETR by EnvirosMarch.