U.S. power plant emissions fell to their lowest level in almost 25 years, driven by the shale gas boom, the federal government reported Friday.
“Carbon dioxide emissions from electricity generation totaled 1,925 million metric tons in 2015, the lowest since 1993 and 21 percent below their 2005 level,” said the Energy Information Administration, the Energy Department’s independent analysis arm.
The agency attributed the big drop to the country’s shift from coal-fired electricity to increasing amounts of natural gas power, along with renewables. Natural gas from the shale drilling boom has made it the most cost-competitive fuel for power plants over coal. Gas-fired electricity is now the dominant form of power production in the country.
“A shift on the electricity generation mix, with generation from natural gas and renewables displacing coal-fired power, drove the reductions in emissions,” the agency adds. “Total carbon dioxide emissions from the electric power sector declined even as demand for electricity remained relatively flat over the previous decade.”
