A jump in natural gas use combined with big gains in energy
efficiency have helped the United States make strides in cutting
emissions over the past five years, according to a report
released Thursday. The “Sustainable Energy in America” factbook
documents a 6.4 percent slide in total energy use between 2007
and 2012. During the same time frame, the amount of electricity
generated both by natural gas and renewable sources climbed, and
coal-fired power generation declined, helping to trim carbon
dioxide emissions produced when fossil fuels are burned.
“Significant changes are occurring in the US energy sector that
are boosting investment and accelerating deployment of a range
of commercially available clean technologies,” said Lisa
Jacobson, president of Business Council for Sustainable Energy,
which developed the report with Bloomberg New Energy Finance.
Perhaps the biggest change documented in the report is America’s
transition toward lower- and zero-carbon power sources,
especially natural gas, which provid