Emissions Statistics - in Metric Tonnes CO2
Understanding Emissions
A ton of *CO2e is emitted when you:
» Travel 2,000 miles in an airplane
» Drive 1,900 miles in a mid-sized car
» Run an average U.S. household for 60 days
» Have your computer on for 10,600 hours
Average *CO2e emissions per year:
» 4.5 tons from the average U.S. car
» 6.2 tons from electricity use in the average U.S. household
» 21 tons from the average U.S. resident
» 6 billion tons from the United States as a whole
» More than 25 billion tons from the entire planet
* CO2e (carbon dioxide equivalent): carbon dioxide and other molecules emitted into the air cause atmospheric warming. Each type of molecule has a different warming potential (e.g. methane has 21 times the warming effect of CO2). The combined warming effect of the different types of molecules is conveyed as carbon dioxide equivalents.
Source: Clean Air-Cool Planet, A Consumer's Guide to Retail Carbon Offset Providers.
| Emissions in Baseline Year (1990) |
|
22,768 |
| Peak Emissions (2000) |
|
29,424 |
Latest Year Emissions (2010)
|
|
16,101 |
| Statistic |
Baseline |
To |
Percent of Baseline |
| % change in emissions |
1990 |
2000 |
29.23% |
| % change in emissions |
2000 |
2010 |
-45.28% |
| % change in emissions |
1990 |
2010 |
-29.28% |
|
|
|
|
| Emissions per Square Foot |
|
|
|
| |
|
|
|
| % change in emissions |
2002
|
2010
|
-42.86%
|
Other Statistics
Emissions avoided by purchasing 100% green electricity to date: over 35,000 MTCO
2
Composting has increased 800% to over 100 tons per year
