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Energy & Emissions Environment & Climate Spotlight: Air Quality Government

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Energy & Emissions In 2021, 79% of US energy consumption was from fossil fuels, 8.4% was from nuclear, and 12.5% was from renewable sources. The share of energy consumption from nuclear and renewable sources combined has more than doubled since 1980. Forty percent of US renewable and nuclear energy consumption is from nuclear sources, followed by 23.8% from biomass like wood and biofuels. In 2019, the US ranked fifth among the world’s 10 largest economies for its proportion of energy consumption from renewable and nuclear energy. In 2019, 55.1% of New Hampshire’s energy consumption was from renewable and nuclear, the highest nationwide. South Carolina was second, with 45.8%. The US emitted about 5.1 billion metric tons of carbon dioxide in 2019, making up 14.5% of the world’s emissions. Transportation was the largest source of US emissions in 2020. It surpassed electricity generation emissions in 2017. The US emitted about 15.6 metric tons of carbon dioxide per person in 2019, ranking fourth among the world’s top 15 gross emitters. Energy-related carbon dioxide emissions were 6.4% higher in 2021 than 2020, after decreasing the previous year. The average American generated 4.9 lbs. of solid trash (food waste, paper, etc.) daily in 2018, up from 3.7 lbs. in 1980.

Environment & Climate 2021 was the sixth-warmest year on record. All states, and especially in the Northeast and upper Midwest, were warmer in 2021 than the 20th century average. Average US rainfall for the last decade is 3.6% higher than the average rainfall for the previous decade. In 2021, Mississippi and Massachusetts each had more than 10 inches of precipitation over their 20th century averages.

Spotlight: Air Quality

Government There are 731 animal species listed as threatened or endangered, including 171 types of fish, 99 birds, and 96 mammals. The federal government owned 28% of American land as of 2018, down about 5% since 1990. The federal government collected $11.3 billion in revenue from energy and mineral extraction on its lands and waters in 2021, a 19% decrease from 2011, after adjusting for inflation. There were 297 million visits to land managed by the National Park Service in 2021 (including national parks, historical sites, and national monuments), 25% greater than in 2020. The Great Smoky Mountains National Park had 14.2 million visits in 2021, remaining the country’s most-visited national park. The federal government spent $40.9 billion in 2020, or 0.6% of all federal expenditures, on the environment and natural resources (not including renewable energy spending). State and local governments spent $67.7 billion on the environment and natural resources in 2019. Combining bills that became public law, executive orders and presidential memoranda, and significant rulemaking by executive agencies, there were 81 federal actions on land, energy, and the environment in 2021.

Environment & Climate

What is the state of the environment and climate?

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Environment & Climate

2021 was the sixth-warmest year on record.

The average global temperature was 0.84°C (1.51°F) above the 20th century average. It was also 0.15°C (0.27°F) below 2016, the warmest year on record.

Environment & Climate

All states, and especially in the Northeast and upper Midwest, were warmer in 2021 than the 20th century average.

Environment & Climate

Average US rainfall for the last decade is 3.6% higher than the average rainfall for the previous decade.

Environment & Climate

In 2021, Mississippi and Massachusetts each had more than 10 inches of precipitation over their 20th century averages.

Other states are becoming drier: Montana and Oregon had the greatest drops in average annual precipitation compared to their 20th century averages.

Learn more about energy, environment, and natural resources in the US.

Continue exploring the State of the Earth

Energy & Emissions

How do energy and emissions in the United States compare to the rest of the world?

Air Quality

How has air quality changed across the United States?

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