Data Shows Decrease in U.S. Greenhouse Gas Emissions During Trump’s First Year in Office

WASHINGTON (October 17, 2018) – Today, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) released 2017 greenhouse gas (GHG) data collected under the EPA’s Greenhouse Gas Reporting Program (GHGRP), showing overall decreases across sectors and that total U.S. greenhouse gas emissions reported decreased by 2.7 percent from 2016 to 2017.

“Thanks to President Trump’s regulatory reform agenda, the economy is booming, energy production is surging, and we are reducing greenhouse gas emissions from major industrial sources,” said EPA Acting Administrator Andrew Wheeler. “These achievements flow largely from technological breakthroughs in the private sector, not the heavy hand of government. The Trump Administration has proven that federal regulations are not necessary to drive CO2 reductions. While many around the world are talking about reducing greenhouse gases, the U.S. continues to deliver, and today’s report is further evidence of our action-oriented approach.”

Key Findings:

• Reported total GHG emissions declined by 2.7 percent since 2016.
• Reported emissions from large power plants declined 4.5 percent since 2016, and 19.7 percent since 2011. 

This is the seventh year of full data collection for most sectors under the Program, and more than 8,000 large facilities reported 2017 GHG emissions to EPA.

President Trump’s regulatory reform agenda is spurring continued innovation in the energy sector. Under the proposed Affordable Clean Energy Rule, carbon dioxide emissions from the U.S. power sector would continue to decline, with a decrease projected of 34% below 2005 levels.

EPA will be holding an informational webinar Wednesday, October 24th, to demonstrate its greenhouse gas data publication tool known as “FLIGHT,” including new features and a tutorial on common searches. FLIGHT allows users to view reported data by region, industry, or greenhouse gas; and download lists.

Background

As directed by Congress, EPA collects annual, facility-level emissions data from major industrial sources, including power plants, oil and gas production and refining, iron and steel mills, and landfills. In addition to collecting detailed emissions from the largest GHG emitting facilities, EPA’s GHGRP also collects data from upstream fossil fuel and industrial gas suppliers.

 For more information, and to register for the webinar see: www.epa.gov/ghgreporting/

To view the new data directly in FLIGHT, see: https://ghgdata.epa.gov/ghgp/main.do