Carbon Emissions Drop Sharply

A report released by the U.S. Energy Information Administration (EIA) shows that CO2 emissions dropped by the largest amount in 2009 since the agency started keeping records in 1949. For the year, CO2 emissions in the U.S. dropped by 405 million metric tons, or 7%, from 2008. The total U.S.emissions in 2009 were reported to be 5.4 billion metric tons.

Since 2007, the year with the highest emissions in the past decade, CO2 emissions have fallen by 585 million metric tons, or nearly 10%. The EIA cited two general reasons for the decline. First, the switch from coal to natural gas as a fuel for generating electricity, and second, a recession that lowered the demand for energy by business and for gasoline by motorists. Read more...