America's largest polluters see emissions drop 4% on-year

Oct. 16 (UPI) -- The United States' largest polluters saw their emissions drop 4% on-year in 2023, according to the Environmental Protection Agency.

Released Tuesday, the EPA's 2023 greenhouse gas data report states the decrease in direct emissions was self-reported by large stationary sources, which represent 50% of all U.S. emissions.

The report states that more than 8,100 industrial facilities reported their greenhouse gas emissions, with power plants being the largest stationary source. A total 1,320 facilities emitting some 1.5 billion metric tons of carbon dioxide last year.

Reported power plant emissions decreased 7.2% from 2022, the report found, adding that there has been a 33.8% decrease from 2011. According to the report, this decrease reflects "the long-term shifts in power sector fuel-stock from coal to natural gas."

However, while power plant emissions have been going down, those produced by petroleum and natural gas systems, the second-largest stationary source of reported emissions last year, have been increasing.

According to report, these emissions increased 1.4% on-year and were 16.4% higher than 2016, the earliest year for which comparable data is available

Meanwhile, emissions from other large sources in the industrial and waste sectors dropped 1.1% last year and 10.3% from 2011.

"From 2011 to 2023, total reported GHG emissions from large facilities decreased by approximately 22%, driven by a decrease in power plant emissions," the EPA said. "This decline occurred despite the fact that after 2016, the program began tracking additional sources."