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- The United States emits more than 20 percent of total global greenhouse gas emissions (GHG). In fact, the 25 countries with the highest GHG emissions account for 83 percent of global emissions.
Read more facts - Levels of greenhouse gases have increased by about 25 percent since large-scale industrialization began around 150 years ago. In the past 20 years, about three-quarters of human-made carbon dioxide emissions have been from burning fossil fuels.
Read more facts - Energy-related carbon dioxide emissions, resulting from petroleum and natural gas, represent 82 percent of total human-made greenhouse gas emissions in the United States.
Read more facts - The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) estimates that efficient lighting could reduce the nation’s electricity demand by more than 10 percent, resulting in a net savings of $17 billion and a reduction of 202 million metric tons of carbon dioxide emissions.
Read more factsOf the thousands of corporations, hospitals, schools, utilities, and state and local governments that have signed on to the EPA’s Green Lights program, the average internal rate of return on investments in lighting upgrades is roughly 28 percent. - Energy bills for existing U.S. commercial space (78 billion square feet) total $110 billion annually. Increasing the energy efficiency of that space could save more than $25 billion.
Read more facts - Nearly nine in ten (87 percent) of small business owners/managers have taken steps to make their business environmentally friendly. Half of small business owners have taken steps to recycle waste products (51 percent) or follow environmental recommendations within their industry (48 percent).
Read more factsLess than half (46 percent) buy and use recycled products or offer eco-friendly products and services to customers (24 percent). Most small business owners agree that it is important to give back their community (87 percent), and take actions in business to reflect concern for the environment (79 percent). - Rural areas, especially those near urban areas, continue to experience changes in land use because of rapid development and urban sprawl. National Resources Inventory data indicate that between 1982 and 2001, about 34 million acres—an area the size of Illinois— were converted to developed uses.
Read more facts - The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency found that small communities (those with fewer than 10,000 residents) with an average daily wastewater flow of less than one million gallons have documented needs of approximately $16 billion for wastewater treatment over the next 20 years.
Read more factsTotal rural needs for wastewater treatment systems are at a cost of more than $50 billion over the next 20 years. - Of new ethanol plants under construction, 80 percent are in nonmetropolitan counties, 75 percent of which are counties with declining populations.
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