§ 574. Regulation of ozone-depleting products

(a) After January 1, 1990, no person shall sell or offer to sell fire extinguishers for noncommercial or nonindustrial usage, if those fire extinguishers contain halons or other ozone-depleting substances as may be identified by rule of the Secretary; sales to fire departments, for their own use, shall not be prohibited.

(b) After January 1, 1990, no person shall sell or offer to sell:

(1) CFC cleaning sprays for noncommercial or nonindustrial usage in cleaning electronic and photographic equipment,

(2) CFC propelled plastic party streamers, or

(3) CFC noise horns.

(c) The Secretary, by rule adopted no earlier than March 1, 1990, may require the usage of equipment that meets standards established by the Underwriters Laboratories, or an institution determined by the Secretary to be comparable, for recovery and recycling of CFC coolant during the servicing of building air conditioning and of large refrigeration units, if the Secretary finds that equipment to be portable and suitable for those purposes.

(d) By January 15, 1990, the Secretary shall report to the natural resources and energy committees of the General Assembly with the following:

(1) an analysis of the uses within the State of ozone-depleting chemicals;

(2) the advantages and disadvantages of alternatives to those chemicals (both in terms of impacts on the ozone and in terms of other health and environmental impacts);

(3) opportunities for recovery and recycling of these chemicals;

(4) any rules proposed under subsection (c) of this section; and

(5) any appropriate recommendations for action by the State.

(e) The Secretary, by January 15, 1991, shall report to the natural resources and energy committees of the General Assembly with recommendations for the systematic retrieval, storage, and appropriate reuse of CFCs from refrigerators, air conditioners, and motor vehicles that face immediate disposal. This report shall consider, but shall not be limited to considering, regional CFC removal centers, circuit riding CFC removal equipment, or other appropriate procedures or equipment.

(f) After January 1, 1993, no person shall sell or offer to sell any aerosol-propelled consumer product, if it contains hydrochlorofluorocarbons (HCFCs). The Secretary, on application, may postpone the effect of the prohibition established under this subsection, on a case-by-case basis, upon finding that the product is a health, safety-related, or industrial product, for which acceptable alternatives are not available. Any postponement granted under this subsection shall be granted for a specified period of time, not to exceed one year. Extensions granted may be renewed, if appropriate.

(g) After January 1, 1993, no disposal facility or transfer station may dispose of a residential, institutional, commercial, or industrial refrigerator, freezer, refrigerator-freezer, air conditioner, or other cooling device or machine that uses CFCs, without ensuring the item in question is properly drained of CFCs, according to procedures established by rule of the Secretary.

(h) After January 1, 1993, no person shall sell or offer to sell cleaning liquid for the heads of videotape recorders, receivers, and other related machines, if that liquid contains ozone-depleting chemicals.

(i)(1) The Secretary, by rule, shall provide for the reclamation of CFCs recovered under the provisions of this section and section 573 of this title. The rules may provide standards for reclamation equipment and equipment operators, may allow reclamation through a central facility or by the establishment of on-site reclamation capabilities, may allow reclamation by the private sector, the municipalities, or solid waste management districts, and may establish State-operated reclamation efforts.

(2) Costs of CFC reclamation under this subsection shall be borne by the State. (Added 1989, No. 59, § 1; amended 1991, No. 266 (Adj. Sess.), §§ 1, 4.)