The Environmental Protection Agency’s latest report on direct greenhouse gas emissions by facilities and supplies reveals that in 2011, power plants, the largest single source category of climate-warming emissions, produced 4.5 percent less emissions overall than in the year prior.
The 2011 report also included a larger sample of power plants: A total of 1,594 power plants produced a collective 2.221 billion metric tons of carbon dioxide equivalent that year, compared to the total sample of 1,562 power plants that produced 2.326 billion metric tons of CO2-equivalent in 2010.
Overall direct and supplier emissions (excluding those of vehicles) were up slightly in 2011, though, to about 3.3 billion tons of CO2-equivalent, from 3.2 billion in 2010, pushed up by additional reporting by emitters and increased emissions in several other sectors.
The 2011 report covered 85-90 percent of total U.S. greenhouse gas emissions, according to the EPA. Compare the 2011 and 2010 reports, below and on the EPA’s website. The program began with the 2010 data.
(H/T: The Associated Press)
