Workers are using a new mobile refrigerator-degassing unit, imported from Germany, to dispose of old refrigerators under a new program in Ghana to move away from the use of secondhand fridges.

The ban on secondhand refrigerators came into effect at the start of the year (Greenwire, Jan. 2). Imported secondhand refrigerators now are confiscated, and the government is offering a rebate for Ghanaians who trade in their older machines.

At issue are the older devices' use of toxic chlorofluorocarbons, which are banned under the Montreal Protocol. But the primary reason the older refrigerators were banned, according to Energy Commission Deputy Director Kofi Agyarko, was to ease the impact on the national grid.

"Ghana has a lot of used refrigerators -- we conducted a study which revealed that we had in excess of 2 million and that, on average, they were consuming 1,200 [kilowatt-]hours of energy in a year," Agyarko said. "That compares with energy-efficient refrigerators in Europe and the United States, which consume 250 kilowatt-hours in the whole year. That tells you the way we were wantonly dissipating our energy resources."

Owned by City Waste Management, the degassing unit is said to be the first of its kind on the continent. It separates the machines so parts can be recycled or disposed of. Plastics are recycled into flip-flops and plastic containers by Ghanaian companies, and metals and more hazardous materials are sent to recycling plants in Europe. The company is the only manager for the government-rebate program.

Some Ghanaians say they don't like the new ban on secondhand refrigerators. Previously, one Ghanaian said, the secondhand units available were higher quality and European-made. But now, the new refrigerators on the market are lower-quality, Chinese-made models (Afua Hirsch, London Guardian, Jan. 17). -- WW