A new report reveals that greenhouse gas emissions, which can impact the climate, decreased by almost 2% in the United States in 2023, despite a growth in the economy.

According to a report released on Wednesday by the Rhodium Group, an independent research firm, the decrease in emissions is seen as a positive development, but it falls significantly short of meeting President Joe Biden’s goal of reducing U.S. emissions by 50% by 2030, compared to 2005 levels.

According to Ben King, associate director at Rhodium and lead author of the study, if no other adjustments are made, the United States is expected to decrease its greenhouse gas emissions by approximately 40% compared to 2005 levels by the end of this decade.

According to the report, carbon emissions in the United States decreased by 1.9% in the previous year. This marks a 17.2% decrease from 2005.

According to him, in order to achieve Biden’s target, emissions would need to decrease at a rate that is more than three times the 2023 amount and maintain that level consistently until 2030.

An increase in economic operations, such as increased energy production and transportation through vehicles, may result in higher levels of pollution. However, this is not always directly related. The Conference Board, a business research organization, predicts that the U.S. economy will grow by 2.4% in 2023.

According to the report, decreased coal-powered electricity and a relatively mild winter last year resulted in reduced emissions in the power and buildings industries in the United States.

According to the report, emissions from the transportation sector increased due to a resurgence in air travel and higher gasoline consumption as road traffic returns to pre-pandemic levels. The report also noted a slight rise in industrial emissions due to increased domestic oil and gas production.

According to the report, although there was an overall decrease in carbon emissions, there were also concerning developments in 2023. The growth of natural gas generation was more than double that of renewables in 2023, compared to 2022. Additionally, while solar installations were expected to set another record in 2023, wind turbine installations were lower than in both 2022 and 2021.

The increasing expenses of construction and financing, as well as challenges with the supply chain, have raised concerns about the previously strong growth of wind power. Two major offshore wind projects were cancelled towards the end of last year, putting in danger the Biden administration’s target to generate enough energy from large ocean-based turbines to power 10 million homes by 2030.

In 2022, President Biden and Democratic members of Congress enacted the most comprehensive climate legislation in American history. However, according to King, the Inflation Reduction Act’s effects are just starting to be noticed and are not expected to greatly affect emissions for several years.

The climate legislation, approved solely by members of the Democratic party, grants approximately $375 billion in tax breaks and other incentives to motivate investors to expedite the adoption of renewable energy sources like solar and wind power. This will hasten the shift away from using fossil fuels such as oil, coal, and gas, which are major contributors to climate change.

In 2021, Congress approved a bipartisan legislation for infrastructure. Additionally, the Environmental Protection Agency has implemented regulations and suggestions to decrease methane emissions and pollution from coal-powered power plants, among other measures. According to the report, coal, which has been a major source of electricity in the U.S., only accounted for 17% of generation in 2023, marking an all-time low.

In 2023, oil production in the United States reached a record high, which goes against Biden’s attempts to reduce carbon emissions and contradicts the frequently stated Republican claim of Biden’s “war on American energy.”

According to the report, the release of methane, as well as the intentional release and burning of methane and carbon dioxide during the production and transportation of oil and gas, were the main contributors to the rise in emissions from the industrial sector in 2023. Rhodium predicts that the implementation of new EPA regulations, which were recently finalized, will result in a decrease of approximately 40% in greenhouse gas emissions from the oil and gas industry compared to current levels.

Oil and gas operations are the largest industrial source of methane, the main component in natural gas and far more potent than carbon dioxide in the short term. It is responsible for about one-third of planet-warming greenhouse gas emissions. Sharp cuts in methane emissions are a global priority to slow the rate of climate change and were a major topic at a global climate conference in December known as COP28.

The report stated that effectively reducing industrial emissions will also necessitate significant efforts to decrease carbon output in other industries, including iron and steel production, cement manufacturing, and chemical production.

Source: wral.com