ATMOsphere America Summit to Feature Environmental Attorney Robert Bilott
The ATMOsphere (ATMO) America Summit 2024 on natural refrigerant-based heating, ventilation, air conditioning and refrigeration will convene June 10-11 in Washington, DC, with a very special guest speaker.
The keynote speaker for the ATMOsphere America Summit will be Robert Bilott, a prominent U.S. environmental attorney whose lawsuits against the chemical industry exposed for the first time the prevalence and harmful health effects of the environmental pollutant known as PFAS (per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances).
Bilott’s keynote is scheduled for 9:15 am on June 10. ATMOsphere, a Brussels-based global market accelerator for natural refrigerants, is the organizer of the conference and publisher of NaturalRefrigerants.com.
Bilott’s keynote address – “How Robert Bilott exposed the global threat of PFAS: lessons for the cooling and heating industry” – will be followed by a PFAS panel discussion including Richie Kaur, Non-CO2 Climate Pollution Reduction Advocate, Climate & Energy, for the Natural Resources Defense Council (NRDC); Mindi Messmer, Senior Research Scientist for MedStar Health and former New Hampshire State House Representative; and a representative of ATMOsphere.
Known as “forever chemicals” for their persistence in nature, PFAS encompass nearly 15,000 synthetic fluorinated chemicals that have been used in a variety of applications, such as non-stick cookware and packaging, stain-resistant clothing and carpets, and firefighting foam. According to a widely accepted definition developed by the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD), shorter-chain PFAS include common HFO and HFC gases, some of which degrade into another PFAS, trifluoroacetic acid (TFA), in the atmosphere.
Thanks to Bilott’s work, which was the basis for the critically acclaimed 2019 film Dark Waters, PFAS such as PFOA and PFOS have been linked to several health impacts, including cancer, diminished immunity, changes in liver function and reproductive toxicity. The health effects of shorter-chain PFAS are still being studied, but the German government plans an EU proposal linking reproductive toxicity to TFA, which has been found in blood serum. Bilott’s pathbreaking efforts to hold the chemical industry accountable for PFAS pollution can be seen as a guide for future legal and regulatory efforts aimed at f-gases and TFA.
This 13th annual edition of ATMO America will gather key industry experts, including manufacturers, policymakers, end users and contractors, to learn about the latest developments in natural refrigerant-based HVACR systems, including those using CO2, hydrocarbons (such as propane/R290 and isobutane/R600a) and ammonia (R717), as well as regulatory issues such as PFAS.
Register for the event at www.atmo.org and find the preliminary program and other information on the event website. End users can register for free, and contractors/installers of HVACR systems are eligible to receive one free ticket per organization, with a 50 percent discount on additional tickets.