A green revolution: 30 years of protecting the ozone and climate with natural coolants
70 per cent of the world’s refrigerators now use sustainable natural cooling technology. It all began with technology from East Germany.
40 years ago, scientists discovered a hole in the ozone layer over Antarctica. Most manufacturers of cooling appliances and aerosol canisters responded by switching from ozone-depleting to climate-depleting gases, further driving global warming. Consequently, GIZ has been using natural cooling technology since the Proklima programme was launched in 1995. Natural coolants are friendly to the ozone layer, the climate and the environment. This was a pioneering approach at the time. Today, all refrigerators in the European Union and 70 per cent of refrigerators worldwide use sustainable natural coolants. What brought about this revolution in cooling technology?
Green refrigerators – an East German invention
As Guntram Glasbrenner, Programme Manager of Proklima, explains: ‘The East Germans were the first to demonstrate that natural coolants could also be used safely in household appliances. The former German Democratic Republic (GDR) was economically isolated, which meant companies were unable to import the typical synthetic alternatives to ozone-depleting gases used at the time. As a result, they began to experiment with natural coolants.’ 1992 saw a former GDR firm launch Greenfreeze, the world’s first green coolant, onto the market. Following effective marketing by Greenpeace, major manufacturers such as Bosch, Siemens and Liebherr commenced mass production in the reunified Germany in 1993.
This East German innovation has spared the planet an immense volume of carbon emissions. GIZ’s own efforts to promote the use of natural cooling technologies have yielded total savings in excess of 120 million tonnes of CO2 equivalent. This equates to the annual emissions of more than 30 coal-fired power plants. GIZ established the Green Cooling Initiative, a global network with over 200 partners, to promote global transfer of green technology. On behalf of the German Development Ministry (BMZ) and other donors, GIZ has been working since 1995 to assist 60 countries with introducing climate-friendly natural cooling technology through the Proklima programme.
A journal article published in 1985 set the ball rolling. Researchers had discovered a hole in the ozone layer over Antarctica, suspecting CFC gases as the cause. These gases had been used in hairspray canisters, coolants and foams since the 1920s. Following confirmation that CFCs were indeed depleting the earth’s layer of protection against ultraviolet (UV) radiation, fear loomed large. Without the ozone layer, UV rays would destroy life on earth. There would be an increased risk of skin cancer and eye damage and plants would die.
It was clear to everyone that swift action was needed. The United Nations (UN) produced the Montreal Protocol in 1987, prohibiting the use of ozone-depleting chemicals in cooling systems, aerosols and other appliances worldwide. To date, it is the only accord to be ratified by all UN member states. At their 2016 summit in Kigali, member states also agreed to reduce the use of climate-depleting substances.
Cooling technologies and air-conditioning systems account for around 10 per cent of global greenhouse gas emissions. It is estimated that systematic implementation of the Kigali Amendment worldwide could prevent a 0.5 degree increase in global warming.
From the first German technology transfer with GIZ and Liebherr to a global revolution
Global adoption of natural coolants was still a considerable way off. As the Programme Manager of Proklima states: ‘German manufacturers first unveiled Greenfreeze at a trade fair in China in 1993. Greenpeace was also working hard to spread the word about the product. Shortly afterwards, we worked with the firm Liebherr on a BMZ commission to help switch a refrigerator production line in China to green technology. This was the first time green cooling technology had been transferred outside of Germany.’
By the time the Kigali Amendment entered into effect in 2019, GIZ had already been employing natural coolants in place of synthetic technologies for almost 25 years. Glasbrenner adds: ‘We showed that it was possible to replace synthetic coolants with natural, climate-friendly alternatives and demonstrated how to do it. To this end, we worked and continue to work with governments, international organisations and companies in partner countries to develop and test viable products. We then implement them around the globe.’ With global warming driving up demand for cooling appliances worldwide, there is still much to be done. Climate change continues to be exacerbated by the use of synthetic substances in air-conditioning systems.
GIZ is advising partner countries on transposing the international requirements of the Montreal and Kigali accords into legislation and putting this legislation into practice. GIZ is also working with companies to establish new production lines. Given the highly flammable nature of natural coolants, GIZ has trained over 600,000 men and women to date in the safe handling of these substances. Glasbrenner outlines their benefits: ‘Natural coolants are not patented and are increasingly available worldwide, which makes them cheaper than synthetic alternatives. They also enable refrigerators to operate more energy-efficiently and, in many countries, to be powered cost-effectively with solar energy.’
The green technology revolution is good for the climate and our wallets. It also improves many people’s lives. Technicians specially trained in this sector are in high demand, earn well and can feed themselves and their families. Thanks to Proklima, supermarkets, fishmongers and butchers around the world can refrigerate more produce at lower cost. In hot countries, GIZ’s green cooling projects are also enabling the use of end-to-end cold chains for vaccines. In Burkina Faso, for instance, energy-efficient, eco-friendly refrigerators have been used to vaccinate 11,000 people. And the vaccination rate for children in individual regions of Malawi has risen to between 80 and 90 per cent thanks to the new cooling technology. Though its Proklima programme, GIZ is contributing to good outcomes for 15 of the United Nations’ 17 Sustainable Development Goals.