ENVIRONMENTAL IMPACT

Refrigerants and climate change

How much each gas warms the planet when it leaks, what is published about refrigerant and cooling emissions in the GCC, and who recovers and reclaims gas.

WHAT A LEAK DOES

1 kg of AC gas released into the air equals…

The three gases found in most ACs in the GCC, and what one kilogram leaking means for the climate.

R-410A

The gas in most split ACs fitted in the GCC over the last 15 years.

1 kg of R-410A =2,088 kg of CO₂

Releasing 1 kg of R-410A warms the planet as much as releasing 2,088 kg of carbon dioxide.

8,400 km driven in a typical petrol car
35 trees growing for 10 years to soak it back up

R-32

The gas in most new ACs: it warms the planet about a third as much as R-410A.

1 kg of R-32 =675 kg of CO₂

Releasing 1 kg of R-32 warms the planet as much as releasing 675 kg of carbon dioxide.

2,700 km driven in a typical petrol car
11 trees growing for 10 years to soak it back up

R-22

The old AC gas, being phased out: it also damages the ozone layer.

1 kg of R-22 =1,810 kg of CO₂

Releasing 1 kg of R-22 warms the planet as much as releasing 1,810 kg of carbon dioxide.

7,300 km driven in a typical petrol car
30 trees growing for 10 years to soak it back up

Warming factors: IPCC AR4, 100 years, the basis the Kigali Amendment uses. Car and tree comparisons: US EPA Greenhouse Gas Equivalencies Calculator. Rounded.

CASE STUDY · DUBAI

Dubai has 452 AC service companies. If each had only one technician operating, and each released just 1 kg of R-410A…

If it happened today

452 technicians × 1 kg × 2,088= 944 tonnes of CO₂

205cars driven for a whole year

15,730trees growing for 10 years to soak it back up

Number of companies: Citysearch UAE listings. One technician per company is deliberately low: most employ several, so the real figure is higher. 1 kg is about what a single careless recharge or a purge without recovery can release. Longer periods assume the same 1 kg each, every day.

RECOVERY AND RECLAIM

Who recovers and reclaims gas in the GCC

Recovering gas instead of venting it is the single biggest thing a technician can do for the climate.

Company	Country	Cities	Gases	Website
Al Waleed Refrigerant Gas IndustryReclaimer / recycler	UAE	Ajman (Al Jurf Industrial Area 2)	—	alwaleedrefrigerant.com
EnviroserveReclaimer / recycler	UAE	Dubai (Dubai Industrial City)	—	enviroserve.ae
National Refrigerant Reclamation Centre (operated by Aztec Services)Reclaimer / recycler	Bahrain	—	—	international.centrogalileo.it

1 KG LEAKING

1 kg of gas leaking = how far would you have to drive?

The distance a typical petrol car drives to put the same warming into the air as 1 kg of each gas. Red: very high. Amber: medium. Green: very low.

Switching from R-410A to R-32 cuts the damage of a leak by 68%. Most new ACs in the GCC already use R-32.

R-507AVery high

16,000 km3,985 kg CO₂

R-404AVery high

15,800 km3,922 kg CO₂

R-452AVery high

8,600 km2,140 kg CO₂

R-410AVery high

8,400 km2,088 kg CO₂

R-22Very high

7,300 km1,810 kg CO₂

R-407CVery high

7,100 km1,774 kg CO₂

R-134aVery high

5,800 km1,430 kg CO₂

R-449AVery high

5,600 km1,396 kg CO₂

R-448AVery high

5,600 km1,386 kg CO₂

R-32Medium

2,700 km675 kg CO₂

R-513AMedium

2,500 km630 kg CO₂

R-454BMedium

1,900 km465 kg CO₂

R-600aVery low

12 km3 kg CO₂

R-744Very low

4 km1 kg CO₂

Each road: how far a typical petrol car drives to emit as much as 1 kg of the gas leaking (about 0.25 kg of CO₂ per km, US EPA). Warming factors: IPCC AR4, 100 years.

The same gases, in plain words

Gas	1 kg leaking =	Harms the ozone layer?	Catches fire?	Being phased out?
R-507AHFC blend	16,000 km of driving3,985 kg of CO₂	No	No	Yes: cut under Kigali
R-404AHFC blend	15,800 km of driving3,922 kg of CO₂	No	No	Yes: cut under Kigali
R-452AHFO/HFC blend	8,600 km of driving2,140 kg of CO₂	No	No	Partly
R-410AHFC blend	8,400 km of driving2,088 kg of CO₂	No	No	Yes: cut under Kigali
R-22HCFC	7,300 km of driving1,810 kg of CO₂	Yes	No	Yes: being banned
R-407CHFC blend	7,100 km of driving1,774 kg of CO₂	No	No	Yes: cut under Kigali
R-134aHFC	5,800 km of driving1,430 kg of CO₂	No	No	Yes: cut under Kigali
R-449AHFO/HFC blend	5,600 km of driving1,396 kg of CO₂	No	No	Partly
R-448AHFO/HFC blend	5,600 km of driving1,386 kg of CO₂	No	No	Partly
R-32HFC	2,700 km of driving675 kg of CO₂	No	Mildly	Yes: cut under Kigali
R-513AHFO/HFC blend	2,500 km of driving630 kg of CO₂	No	No	Partly
R-454BHFO/HFC blend	1,900 km of driving465 kg of CO₂	No	Mildly	Partly
R-600aNatural	12 km of driving3 kg of CO₂	No	Yes, easily	No
R-744Natural	4 km of driving1 kg of CO₂	No	No	No

Technical figures (GWP on each IPCC basis, ozone depletion, safety class)

Gas	GWP AR4	AR5	AR6	ODP	Safety class
R-507A	3,985	3,985	4,775	0	A1
R-404A	3,922	3,943	4,728	0	A1
R-452A	2,140	1,945	2,292	0	A1
R-410A	2,088	1,924	2,256	0	A1
R-22	1,810	1,760	1,960	0.055	A1
R-407C	1,774	1,624	1,908	0	A1
R-134a	1,430	1,300	1,530	0	A1
R-449A	1,396	1,282	1,505	0	A1
R-448A	1,386	1,273	1,494	0	A1
R-32	675	677	771	0	A2L
R-513A	630	573	674	0	A1
R-454B	465	467	531	0	A2L
R-600a	3	3	—	0	A3
R-744	1	1	1.00	0	A1

PUBLISHED STATISTICS

What is published about cooling and climate

Each figure as its publisher gives it, with the year and a link.

UAE · EMISSIONS · 2021

UAE total greenhouse gas emissions 2021

204,001.78 Gg CO2e (~204 Mt), excl. LULUCF

The UAE's whole-economy greenhouse gas emissions in 2021 were about 204 million tonnes CO2e: a yardstick for refrigerant figures.

UNFCCC national reports (inventories, BURs, review records) · UNFCCC, Facilitative sharing of views record – United Arab Emirates (Dec 2025)

UAE · EMISSIONS · 2021

UAE F-gas emissions 2021 (official inventory)

0.15 Mt CO2e

The UAE's own inventory puts fluorinated-gas emissions at a tiny 0.15 Mt CO2e, but Climate Action Tracker warns that F-gas reporting is limited by data gaps.

Climate Action Tracker · Climate Action Tracker