Colombia. The phenomenon of refrigerant counterfeiting exposed by ACR LATINOAMÉRICA (see article click aquí) continues in force, especially in Colombia, a country that registers the highest rates of adulterated gases confiscated by the customs authority.
The Ozone Technical Unit of that country announced the training programme for customs officials, which aims to exercise more effective control over trade in ozone-depleting substances. "Within the framework of the development of this program and with the information of participating experts, it was established that there may be counterfeit refrigerants, such as HFC-134a that is sold as a pure substance, but is actually CFC-12 or mixtures of unknown gases," explained the UTO technicians exclusively to ACR LATINOAMÉRICA.
They added that the best way to detect a refrigerated gas is to check for alterations in the efficiency of the equipment after recharging. "Likewise, the cans and boxes in which the refrigerant comes should not have spelling errors or printing problems."
The most important thing, in any case, is to buy the product on trusted sites and suspect gases with a price below the market average. And if the purchased product is distrusted, the UTO recommends contacting the Directorate of National Taxes and Customs (Dian) and the customs police and informing the Ozone Technical Unit, attached to the Ministry of Environment, Housing and Territorial Development, so that they can take the appropriate measures.
Official statistics regarding the entry and seizure of adulterated substances in Colombia are not yet known.
