Total consumption of energy in the U.S. fell by 3 percent between January and September 2012 compared to the same nine-month-period in 2011, according to the latest statistics released by the Energy Information Administration (EIA).
Consumption of all three major types of energy — fossil fuels, nuclear and renewables, saw decreases. The biggest reduction by category of usage came from residential and commercial energy consumption, down 5.2 percent.
Meanwhile, overall energy production increased by 2 percent over the same period, driven primarily by a 3.14 percent increase in fossil fuel production, according to the monthly energy review report. During the same time, renewable energy production fell by 2.8 percent.
The news comes as the oil and gas industry and its supporters press the President and Congress to open more federal lands for drilling and fracking, which would further increase domestic production, the Hill reported Wednesday.
