Approximately 50% of HFC-134a production is for automotive air conditioning, 15% for domestic refrigeration, and most of the remaining 35% for commercial and residential air conditioning and supermarket refrigeration.
Over a twenty year time-span, the global warming potential (GWP) of HFC-134a is estimated to be 3,200 times that of carbon dioxide (CO2).
Presented more graphically, the global warming impact of a worldwide annual production of at least 200,000 tonnes of HFC-134a equals roughly the CO2 emissions of an industrialized nation the size of France or the UK.
A recent report by the Dutch Government concluded: "If HFCs are to be used to replace CFCs without restriction, global HFC emissions may increase to 1931 Mtonnes CO2 equivalent per year by 2035. If HFCs are also used as substitutes for HCFCs, emissions could double to 4665 Mtonne CO2 equivalent per year in 2035. These HFC emissions equal 7% and 17% respectively of present CO2 emissions."*
