DOJ Settlement Targets R-22 Refrigerant Leaks Across Kroger Stores Nationwide
Key Highlights
- Kroger will invest approximately $100 million over three years to reduce refrigerant leaks and enhance compliance measures.
- The settlement mandates retrofitting or replacing 600 refrigeration systems across the U.S. to improve leak prevention.
- The company will implement a new refrigerant management system to improve leak detection, repairs, and recordkeeping.
- The agreement addresses violations involving R-22 refrigerant management from 2014 to 2023, highlighting regulatory focus on legacy refrigerants.
CINCINNATI, Ohio — The Kroger Company has agreed to a proposed settlement with the U.S. Department of Justice that would require significant investments in refrigerant leak reduction and compliance measures at grocery stores across the United States.
According to the Department of Justice, the settlement resolves alleged violations of the Clean Air Act related to Kroger's management of refrigeration equipment containing R-22 refrigerant between 2014 and 2023. Federal officials alleged the company failed to promptly repair refrigerant leaks and maintain required refrigeration service records.
Under the proposed consent decree, Kroger will spend an estimated $100 million over the next three years to reduce coolant leaks from refrigeration equipment and strengthen compliance with regulations designed to protect the ozone layer.
The company will also pay a $2.5 million civil penalty.
If approved by the court, the agreement will require Kroger to retrofit or replace 600 large commercial refrigeration systems at stores nationwide. The company must also implement a refrigerant management system intended to improve leak prevention, accelerate repairs, and enhance recordkeeping.
The settlement further requires Kroger to maintain a company-wide average refrigerant leak rate of no more than 9.5% annually.
The Department of Justice said the violations involved R-22.
"Compliance with the Clean Air Act protects human health," said Adam Gustafson, principal deputy assistant attorney general for the Justice Department's Environment and Natural Resources Division, in a statement announcing the settlement.
The proposed consent decree was filed in the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of Ohio and is subject to a 30-day public comment period. The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency investigated the matter, and attorneys from the Department of Justice's Environmental Enforcement Section are handling the case.
For HVACR contractors and commercial refrigeration service providers, the settlement highlights the continued regulatory focus on refrigerant leak detection, timely repairs, recordkeeping, and refrigerant management practices, particularly for systems using legacy refrigerants such as R-22.