A San Diego man has pleaded guilty to conspiracy in the primary criminal case in federal court involving the illegal import of potent greenhouse gases commonly utilized in refrigeration and freezers.
Federal lawmakers have banned the import of those substances, referred to as hydrofluorocarbons, because they contribute harmfully to climate change. “Their impact on global warming can be hundreds to thousands of times greater per unit mass than that of carbon dioxide,” the Coalition for climate and clean airan initiative of the United Nations Environment Programme.
Michael Hart, 58, was arrested in March for allegedly smuggling the illegal coolants across the border from Mexico on multiple occasions with out a permit from the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency. In a primary of its kind, a grand jury indicted Hart for allegedly violating the American Innovation and Manufacturing Act of 2020 (AIM Act), which prohibits the importation of such substances with out a permit from the EPA.
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Hart pleaded guilty on Tuesday to conspiracy to violate the federal Clean Air Act and the AIM Act. In a settlement, he admitted that he bought hydrofluorocarbons – that are utilized in refrigeration and air-con in addition to in constructing insulation, fire suppression systems and aerosols – in Mexico after which smuggled them across the border to sell within the United States for a profit.
“Clean air is not sold to the highest bidder,” U.S. Attorney Tara McGrath said in an announcement. “The Department of Justice will use every tool at our disposal to protect air quality and hold criminal polluters accountable.”
Assistant Attorney General Todd Kim of the Justice Department's Environment and Natural Resources Division said federal prosecutors are committed to enforcing the AIM Act and other laws designed to stop environmental harm.
“Congress has made it illegal to import certain refrigerants into the United States without a permit because they have been shown to make a significantly greater contribution to climate change,” Kim said in an announcement.
According to his plea agreement, Hart advertised the illegal refrigerants on OfferUp, Facebook Marketplace and other web sites after which ordered the substances from co-conspirators in Mexico. Hart then drove to Tijuana, picked up the refrigerants and brought them across the border hidden under a tarp and tools.
The original indictment charged Hart with 13 counts of conspiracy, illegal importation, and sale of illegally imported goods. Hart is alleged to have conspired with others to smuggle cylinders of the regulated refrigerants into the United States on at the very least five occasions – once in July 2022 and 4 times in October of that yr. The indictment states he sold the illegal refrigerants seven times in September and October 2022.
As a part of his guilty plea to the conspiracy charge, prosecutors agreed to drop the opposite 12 charges. Hart agreed to pay $1,500 in restitution to cover the associated fee of disposing of the coolants. He faces a maximum of 5 years in prison, but prosecutors really helpful a lesser sentence and a $250,000 superb.
Hart's sentencing is scheduled for December.
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