The United States is advancing its efforts to reduce global warming with the recent announcement of a $5-billion investment in research and development funds from the heating, ventilating, air conditioning and refrigeration (HVACR) industry.

At an event sponsored by the White House Council on Environmental Quality on September 16, Air Conditioning, Heating and Refrigeration Institute (AHRI) President and CEO Stephen Yurek said the money will be used to develop and commercialize low global-warming-potential (GWP) technologies.

Since the late 1980s when the HVACR industry began to develop non-chlorine-containing refrigerants, it’s been on a mission to help protect the ozone layer. The new investment, to be administered over the next ten years, reflects this dedication.

“Close to $2 billion has been spent by the industry since 2009, researching energy-efficient equipment and the utilization of low-GWP refrigerants,” said Yurek. “The industry is committed to working with the international community in transitioning away from high-GWP refrigerants in a managed and orderly process, and this research is a tangible part of that commitment.”

This investment signals the second phase of the Low-GWP Alternative Refrigerants Evaluation Program launched in 2011. The first phase was completed at the end of 2013.