The US Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) has released its annual greenhouse gas (GHG) report for large emitters.
The EPA report demonstrates the GHG emissions count of the country’s largest emitters for the year 2022, and compares those numbers to previous years.
Hence, the EPA provides a comprehensive overview of the efforts some facilities have put in to minimize their carbon footprints, while others have done no such thing and have continued to pollute the atmosphere more than ever.
All in all, the report shows a slight decrease in emissions from some of the largest emitters in the United States, despite the fact that a vast number of industrial facilities continue to emit large quantities of CO2 and other greenhouse gasses.
Namely, according to data from the EPA, industrial emissions in 2022 decreased by roughly 1% year on year, bringing the total count down to 2.7 billion metric tons of CO2 equivalent (CO2e).
The report showcases data on the leading emitters by greenhouse gas type, of which there are six: CO2, methane, perfluorocarbons, hydrofluorocarbons, sulfur hexafluoride, and nitrous oxide.
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One of the most impressive emissions reduction examples highlighted in the report is that of the Petal Gas Storage Compressor Station in Petal, Mississippi, which managed to slash its methane emissions by 91% from 2018 levels.
Other major industrial emitters have promised to follow suit and reduce their emissions by as much as 99% by the end of 2023, and some polluters in 2022 reported their highest emissions to date.
It should come as no surprise that power plants have the highest emissions count of all the sectors listed in the EPA report with oil and gas coming in second, followed by non-fluorinated chemicals in third place.
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