The following Viewpoint is written by Tristan Schwartzman, principal and director of energy services at Goldman Copeland, and Stephen Murphy, an energy engineer at Goldman Copeland
The State of New York has implemented a new regulation to quantify and ultimately reduce leakage of hydrofluorocarbons, the greenhouse gases often used in refrigeration and cooling equipment. It’s part of implementation of the state’s Climate Act, and it directly affects commercial property owners, who should understand its implications and requirements for them.
In the early 1990s, restrictions were placed on the use of R11 refrigerants, and later on R22 refrigerants, yet the question remains: What refrigerants are now being used and in what amounts, and how much is being released into the atmosphere through leakage?
That’s why the New York State Dept. of Environmental Conservation (DEC) has adopted an amended Part 494 regulation on hydrofluorocarbons. To comply with this regulation, commercial property owners with large (>1500 lbs of refrigerant) or medium-size (>200 lbs of refrigerant) equipment that utilizes refrigerant must register the equipment on a state platform and begin reporting leakage in 2026 for large equipment and 2027 for medium equipment.
What constitutes leakage? Generally, any refrigerant added to the system is the equivalent of what has been leaked. Total leakage, therefore, should simply be the amount of refrigerant purchased.
The new regulation applies to the owner of any building that has a main chiller plant or a large packaged air conditioning unit or a Variable Refrigerant Flow (VRF) system. Owners or their managers should check the nameplate on the chillers or AC units to determine how many pounds of refrigerant are in the equipment.
For owners of larger buildings, this should be relatively straightforward and within their staff’s competence. But, a wide range of smaller buildings could also trigger the requirements: from multi-family buildings with chiller plants to religious institutions to larger retail spaces. Some larger commercial tenants could trigger the requirements, too, with their own independently operated equipment.
For more complicated systems, including VRF, owners may wish to seek expert advice. That’s also true for all sizes of buildings or portfolios of buildings, where either the extent of compliance is more challenging or more technical proficiency is needed.
Beginning in March 2026, owners must report annual refrigerant leakage rates for registered “large” equipment: 1500 lbs of refrigerant or more, typically chillers of about 500 tons of capacity or more. Such large equipment would include, for instance, steam turbine chillers or a main chiller plant for a high-rise building.
By June 2026, owners will be required to register any “medium-size” equipment – from 200 lbs of refrigerant up to 1499 lbs, which could include units as small as 40-50 tons of capacity. They must report annual leakage rates by March 2027. Such equipment would include modular chillers or packaged air conditioning units that cover one floor.
By June 2028, “small” equipment–from 50 lbs to 199 lbs–must be registered.
The registration takes place through an online form on the NYS DEC’s platform and is relatively straight-forward. It requires identifying, for each piece of equipment, information for the unit and its components, including model number, serial number, and a photograph of the registration plate.
To fulfill the requirements, one needs some understanding of chillers, packaged units, and VRF systems–and how many evaporators, condensers, compressors, and expansion valves there are. The process can be challenging for those trying to complete it independently.
To fulfill the leakage reporting, owners will need any maintenance or service invoices for the previous year and any invoices for refrigerant bought for the relevant units, itemized by unit. It’s also important to know what refrigerant is in storage, as accounting for that will reduce the reported leakage.
Owners who fail to comply with the regulation will be liable for a civil penalty of not more than $2,500 for each violation. For each day that the violation continues, an additional penalty of not more than $500 will apply. The cost of non-compliance, therefore, adds up quickly.
The Part 494 mandate will give the State insight into the extent of use of refrigerants and of their leakage. It will thereby encourage a shift to newer equipment with refrigerants that have lower Global Warming Potential.
Tristan Schwartzman, principal and director of energy services at Goldman Copeland, a New York City-based consulting engineering firm. Stephen Murphy, an energy engineer at Goldman Copeland.