HFC projects
United States
Legacy refrigerants pose major climate threats
Hydrofluorocarbons (HFCs) are used in household refrigerators and air conditioning units. They are potent greenhouse gases (GHGs), often with a global warming potential (GWP) hundreds to thousands of times higher than CO₂. Safely and efficiently managing HFCs at end of life provides a substantial opportunity for climate change mitigation.
How the project works
Refrigerant recovered from end-of-life appliances is shipped to our facility in Elk Grove Village, Illinois.
The material is aggregated for destruction at Arcwood Environmental in Ohio.
Rigorous measurement and verification at every stage ensures integrity.
The challenge:
A race against time
The domestic appliance market has largely already transitioned to lower-GWP refrigerants. Appliances that use legacy HFC refrigerants are being decommissioned at the end of their life, therefore no longer using any refrigerant gases. But safely removing these gases comes with significant labor and costs. This means many legacy HFCs from decommissioned equipment have no safe or viable path for recovery and reuse, and instead will end up leaking into the atmosphere. Once out into the world, they cannot be captured and sequestered.
The solution:
Diffusing climate bombs
Our safe and permanent destruction of HFCs from end-of-life appliances prevents these harmful warming agents from doing damage. Destroying just one 8oz canister of R-134a, the HFC most commonly used in household refrigerators, is equivalent to preventing the GHG emissions from driving 751 miles in an average gasoline-powered car.
Destruction of these gases is costly and complex, and takes dedicated projects like ours to execute at scale. When Tradewater sells carbon credits generated from the destruction of harmful greenhouse gases, we fund more impactful work, creating a positive investment cycle for our mission-driven projects.
The opportunity for impact is within our reach
Accelerating our impact
88,841
tonnes of CO2e avoided
through U.S. HFC projects
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Project Details
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Project location
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United States of America
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Project type
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Ozone depleting substances (ODS)
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Carbon avoidance
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Registry
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OneShot
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Years active
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2025-ongoing
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Batch
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Batch ID
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Vintage
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Tons of CO2e
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Weight of CO2e
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Verifier
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Project Documents
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01
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2025
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88,841
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59,638 kg
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GHD
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Tradewater provides high-quality, high-impact carbon credits that are:
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Additional
There is currently no mandate for an end-of-life solution for these refrigerants. If we don’t do the work, no one else will, and these gases will accelerate global warming when released.
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Permanent
The refrigerants we collect are completely destroyed using an irreversible process with 99.99% efficiency, with third-party verification confirming every step.
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Accurate
Our credits are linked to environmental benefits that are clear, measured, and precise.
Together, we can do even more.
Amplify your action today.
Join the individuals and businesses taking real climate action to stop HFCs from leaking and invest in one of the most impactful climate solutions today.
