Greenhouse gas emissions in the United States increased .9 percent from 2013 to 2014, according to the Draft Inventory of U.S. Greenhouse Gas Emissions and Sinks released Monday by the Environmental Protection Agency. The report also says emissions have increased 7.7 percent from 1990-2014.
The 2014 increase can be attributed to a number of factors, according to the report. “Relatively cool winter conditions led to an increase in fuels for the residential and commercial sectors for heating. In 2014 there also was an increase in industrial production across multiple sectors resulting in slight increases in industrial sector emissions. Lastly, transportation emissions increased as a result of a small increase in vehicle miles traveled (VMT) and fuel use across on-road transportation modes,” the report says.
Total carbon emissions increased in 2014 to 5,564.3 million metric tons (MMT) from 5,512.2 million MMT in 2013. The increase in carbon emissions signals the end of a two-year downward trend that started in 2012 when CO2 emissions fell to 5,361 MMT from 5,568.6 MMT in 2011. “Within the United States, fossil fuel combustion accounted for 93.6 percent of CO2 emissions in 2014,” according to the report.
