Carbon dioxide emissions by state

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The following article includes data on carbon dioxide (CO₂) emissions from energy use in the United States. All carbon dioxide emissions in a given area, such as a nation, include natural and human-caused CO₂, which is a colorless, odorless, incombustible gas that is vital to life on Earth. It is a naturally occurring chemical compound present in the atmosphere at a concentration of approximately 0.04 percent (400 parts per million) by volume. Carbon dioxide is produced from human and animal respiration, volcanoes, hot springs, and geysers, and the burning of coal, petroleum, and natural gas, which are sometimes called fossil fuels.

Greenhouse gases, of which carbon dioxide is one, are naturally present in the Earth's atmosphere and absorb and release infrared radiation. The five naturally present greenhouse gases are water vapor, ozone, carbon dioxide, methane, and nitrous oxide. Without carbon dioxide and other greenhouse gases, Earth would be much colder and inhospitable to life. Approximately 750 gigatons of carbon dioxide move through the global carbon cycle each year. About 29 gigatons—3.8 percent—is anthropogenic (human-caused) and caused by land use, such as agricultural activities and deforestation, and the burning of fossil fuels. The remaining 96.2 percent is produced naturally by vegetation, land, and oceans.

CO₂ emissions from energy use vary from state-to-state on both an absolute and per capita basis because of several factors, such as the size of the state, the kind of fuel available in the state, the state's climate, population, and industries.

HIGHLIGHTS

In 2013, CO₂ emissions from energy use in the United States totaled 5,278 million metric tons. From 2000 to 2013, total emissions from energy use fell from 5,837 million metric tons of CO₂—a 9.6 percent decrease.

In 2013, Texas and California had the highest emissions—641 million metric tons and 353.1 million metric tons, respectively.

Vermont and Rhode Island had the lowest emissions—5.6 million metric tons and 10 million metric tons, respectively.

The data on this page was collected by the U.S. Energy Information Administration (EIA), a federal agency.

Total emissions by year

Summary

From 2000 to 2013, total carbon dioxide (CO₂) emissions from energy use in the United States fell from 5,837 million metric tons of CO₂ to 5,278 million metric tons—a 9.6 percent decrease.

Total emissions (2007-2013)

The table below summarizes total CO₂ emissions from energy use for each state and Washington, D.C., between 2007 and 2013. State CO₂ emissions include emissions from direct fuel use across all sectors, including residential, commercial, industrial and transportation, as well as fuels used for electric power.

Total emissions from energy use in the United States decreased by 656.3 million metric tons between 2007 and 2013, from 5,934.9 million metric tons in 2007 to 5,278.6 million metric tons in 2013—a decrease of 12.43 percent.

Forty-two states saw their emissions decline from 2007 to 2013. The largest percentage decrease during this period occurred in Georgia (-27.32 percent), New Hampshire (-26.32 percent), and Hawaii (-25 percent). The largest absolute decline in emissions during this period occurred in Georgia (-50 million metric tons), California (-44 million metric tons) and Ohio (-39 million metric tons). Vermont's 2013 emissions were unchanged from 2007 levels.

Just seven states saw their emissions increase from 2007 to 2013: Nebraska (20.45 percent), North Dakota (9.62 percent), Arkansas (7.94 percent) South Dakota (7.14 percent), Idaho (6.25 percent), Wyoming (3.03 percent), and Texas (2.89 percent). The largest absolute increase in emissions during this period occurred in Texas (18 million metric tons), Nebraska (9 million metric tons), North Dakota (5 million metric tons), and Arkansas (5 million metric tons).

Total state CO2 emissions from energy use by year, 2007–2013 (in million metric tons)
State	2007	2008	2009	2010	2011	2012	2013	Percentage change	Absolute change
Alabama	147	139	119	132	129	122	120	-18.37%	-27
Alaska	44	39	38	39	38	38	36	-18.18%	-8
Arizona	101	101	92	94	92	90	94	-6.93%	-7
Arkansas	63	64	61	65	67	65	68	7.94%	5
California	397	380	365	358	345	350	353	-11.08%	-44
Colorado	98	97	92	95	91	90	91	-7.14%	-7
Connecticut	40	37	35	36	34	34	34	-15.00%	-6
Delaware	17	16	12	12	13	14	13	-23.53%	-4
Florida	254	235	221	238	225	218	218	-14.17%	-36
Georgia	183	171	160	170	154	134	133	-27.32%	-50
Hawaii	24	19	19	19	19	19	18	-25.00%	-6
Idaho	16	15	15	16	15	15	17	6.25%	1
Illinois	241	239	224	229	228	215	230	-4.56%	-11
Indiana	233	229	206	217	209	195	200	-14.16%	-33
Iowa	85	88	83	87	84	79	80	-5.88%	-5
Kansas	80	77	75	75	74	69	73	-8.75%	-7
Kentucky	156	154	143	150	148	138	137	-12.18%	-19
Louisiana	226	216	197	215	216	203	195	-13.72%	-31
Maine	21	19	18	18	17	16	16	-23.81%	-5
Maryland	77	73	69	68	63	58	58	-24.68%	-19
Massachusetts	79	76	69	70	67	60	65	-17.72%	-14
Michigan	180	174	162	163	158	151	160	-11.11%	-20
Minnesota	100	99	91	91	91	86	89	-11.00%	-11
Mississippi	68	64	60	65	60	62	60	-11.76%	-8
Missouri	140	136	130	134	134	126	131	-6.43%	-9
Montana	38	37	33	34	32	30	32	-15.79%	-6
Nebraska	44	46	47	49	52	50	53	20.45%	9
Nevada	41	40	39	37	33	34	36	-12.20%	-5
New Hampshire	19	18	17	16	16	14	14	-26.32%	-5
New Jersey	130	127	110	112	113	102	105	-19.23%	-25
New Mexico	59	57	58	54	56	54	54	-8.47%	-5
New York	198	188	171	172	162	159	160	-19.19%	-38
North Carolina	153	147	131	140	126	119	122	-20.26%	-31
North Dakota	52	53	51	52	54	56	57	9.62%	5
Ohio	268	262	236	247	235	215	229	-14.55%	-39
Oklahoma	109	111	106	105	107	104	103	-5.50%	-6
Oregon	43	42	40	40	36	36	38	-11.63%	-5
Pennsylvania	276	268	243	254	246	236	244	-11.59%	-32
Rhode Island	11	11	11	11	11	10	10	-9.09%	-1
South Carolina	88	85	80	83	79	73	69	-21.59%	-19
South Dakota	14	15	15	15	14	15	15	7.14%	1
Tennessee	128	121	101	108	105	98	97	-24.22%	-31
Texas	623	595	564	597	616	613	641	2.89%	18
Utah	70	69	64	63	64	61	66	-5.71%	-4
Vermont	6	6	6	6	6	5	6	0.00%	0
Virginia	127	115	104	107	98	96	103	-18.90%	-24
Washington	81	78	75	74	69	69	73	-9.88%	-8
West Virginia	116	111	89	99	97	91	93	-19.83%	-23
Wisconsin	104	104	95	97	96	89	100	-3.85%	-4
Wyoming	66	67	64	65	64	66	68	3.03%	2
United States total†	5,934.90	5,732.00	5,309.90	5,493.80	5,359.90	5,144.60	5,278.60	-12.43%	-656.30
Source: U.S. Energy Information Administration, "State energy-related carbon dioxide emissions by year" †Note: The total for all states is different from the national-level estimate due to differing methodologies between the two data series.

Total emissions (2000-2006)

The table below summarizes total CO₂ emissions from energy use for each state and Washington D.C., between 2000 and 2006. State CO₂ emissions include emissions from direct fuel use across all sectors, including residential, commercial, industrial and transportation, as well as fuels used for electric power.

Total emissions from energy use in the United States increased by 15.7 million metric tons between 2000 and 2006, from 5,837.3 million metric tons in 2000 to 5,853 million metric tons in 2006—an increase of 0.27 percent.

Twenty-three states saw their emissions decline from 2000 to 2006. The largest percentage decrease during this period occurred in Rhode Island (-16.6 percent), New York (-9.43 percent) and Nevada (-8.89 percent). The largest absolute decline in emissions during this period occurred in Texas (-25 million metric tons), New York (-20 million metric tons) and Michigan (-16 million metric tons).

Twenty-two states saw their emissions increase from 2000 to 2006 (Idaho, Illinois, Maryland, North Dakota, and Vermont had emissions in 2006 that were unchanged from 2000 levels). The largest percentage increase during this period occurred in Hawaii (21 percent), Montana (16.13 percent), and Arizona (15.12 percent). The largest absolute increase in emissions during this period occurred in Florida (17 million metric tons), Missouri (15 million metric tons) and Arizona (13 million metric tons).

Total state CO2 emissions from energy use by year, 2000–2006 (in million metric tons)
State	2000	2001	2002	2003	2004	2005	2006	Percentage change	Absolute change
Alabama	142	134	138	139	141	143	145	2.11%	3
Alaska	44	43	44	44	47	48	46	4.55%	2
Arizona	86	88	88	89	96	96	99	15.12%	13
Arkansas	64	63	61	62	62	60	62	-3.13%	-2
California	382	386	385	372	390	387	394	3.14%	12
Colorado	85	93	91	90	93	95	96	12.94%	11
Connecticut	43	42	40	43	44	44	41	-4.65%	-2
Delaware	17	16	16	17	17	17	16	-5.88%	-1
Florida	240	238	241	245	256	259	257	7.08%	17
Georgia	169	161	166	169	174	184	181	7.10%	12
Hawaii	19	19	21	22	23	23	23	21.05%	4
Idaho	16	16	15	14	16	16	16	0.00%	0
Illinois	234	224	226	230	237	243	234	0.00%	0
Indiana	238	229	232	237	238	236	234	-1.68%	-4
Iowa	78	76	77	77	79	79	80	2.56%	2
Kansas	76	72	77	79	75	72	72	-5.26%	-4
Kentucky	146	149	149	145	152	154	156	6.85%	10
Louisiana	230	202	210	207	217	210	222	-3.48%	-8
Maine	22	23	24	24	24	23	21	-4.55%	-1
Maryland	77	78	78	80	81	83	77	0.00%	0
Massachusetts	82	82	83	84	83	84	76	-7.32%	-6
Michigan	194	190	189	186	188	190	178	-8.25%	-16
Minnesota	98	95	97	101	101	102	99	1.02%	1
Mississippi	62	70	63	64	66	64	66	6.45%	4
Missouri	126	131	132	139	140	143	141	11.90%	15
Montana	31	32	31	33	34	35	36	16.13%	5
Nebraska	42	43	42	43	43	44	44	4.76%	2
Nevada	45	45	41	44	48	50	41	-8.89%	-4
New Hampshire	18	17	18	21	22	21	19	5.56%	1
New Jersey	124	121	121	123	125	130	122	-1.61%	-2
New Mexico	58	58	55	58	59	59	60	3.45%	2
New York	212	208	202	212	214	211	192	-9.43%	-20
North Carolina	149	144	145	146	149	153	148	-0.67%	-1
North Dakota	51	52	51	51	50	52	51	0.00%	0
Ohio	266	256	262	270	264	271	264	-0.75%	-2
Oklahoma	100	102	102	104	100	107	110	10.00%	10
Oregon	41	41	39	40	41	41	40	-2.44%	-1
Pennsylvania	277	264	271	274	277	280	274	-1.08%	-3
Rhode Island	12	12	12	12	11	11	10	-16.67%	-2
South Carolina	82	80	81	82	89	88	88	7.32%	6
South Dakota	14	14	14	14	14	13	13	-7.14%	-1
Tennessee	128	127	126	124	126	127	129	0.78%	1
Texas	652	647	655	648	641	617	627	-3.83%	-25
Utah	65	63	62	63	65	67	68	4.62%	3
Vermont	7	7	6	7	7	7	7	0.00%	0
Virginia	123	121	119	123	127	129	122	-0.81%	-1
Washington	83	80	73	75	77	78	76	-8.43%	-7
West Virginia	115	105	118	114	111	113	114	-0.87%	-1
Wisconsin	108	106	107	105	107	111	103	-4.63%	-5
Wyoming	63	63	62	64	64	63	64	1.59%	1
United States total†	5,837.30	5,727.60	5,760.50	5,807.60	5,904.70	5,936.10	5,853.00	0.27%	15.70
Source: U.S. Energy Information Administration, "State energy-related carbon dioxide emissions by year" †Note: The total for all states is different from the national-level estimate due to differing methodologies between the two data series.

Emissions per capita

Overview

Per capita emissions depend on the state's climate, its economy, available energy resources, building standards and public policy. For example, Wyoming produced 117.3 metric tons of CO₂ per capita in 2013, the highest nationwide, but Wyoming has the lowest population density in the lower 48 states and is the second-largest energy producing state, which affects the state's per capita emissions.

Per capita emissions (2007-2013)

The table below summarizes per capita CO₂ emissions from energy use for each state between 2007 and 2013.

The per capita average of all states decreased between 2007 and 2013, from 19.7 metric tons in 2000 to 16.7 metric tons in 2006—a decrease of nearly 18 percent.

Forty-seven saw their per capita emissions decrease from 2007 to 2013. The largest percentage decrease occurred in Georgia (-47.37 percent), Hawaii (-41.86 percent) and Maryland (-39.18 percent). The largest absolute decrease occurred in Alaska (-15.6 metric tons), West Virginia (-12.7 metric tons) and Louisiana (-9.7 metric tons).

Just three states saw their per capita emissions increase from 2007 to 2013: Nebraska (12.32 percent, or 3.5 metric tons), Arkansas (3.49 percent, or 0.8 metric tons) and South Dakota (2.79 percent, or 0.5 metric tons).

Per capita CO2 emissions from energy use by state, 2007–2013 (in metric tons)
State	2007	2008	2009	2010	2011	2012	2013	Percentage change	Absolute change
Alabama	31.4	29.4	25.1	27.5	26.9	25.4	24.8	-26.61%	-6.6
Alaska	64.6	57.2	53.9	53.9	53.1	51.8	49	-31.84%	-15.6
Arizona	16.4	16.1	14.5	14.6	14.2	13.7	14.1	-16.31%	-2.3
Arkansas	22.1	22.1	21	22.3	22.7	22.2	22.9	3.49%	0.8
California	11	10.4	9.9	9.6	9.1	9.2	9.2	-19.57%	-1.8
Colorado	20.4	19.7	18.6	18.8	17.8	17.3	17.2	-18.60%	-3.2
Connecticut	11.3	10.5	9.9	9.9	9.5	9.3	9.5	-18.95%	-1.8
Delaware	19.4	18.1	13.2	12.8	14	14.9	14.5	-33.79%	-4.9
Florida	13.8	12.7	11.8	12.6	11.8	11.3	11.1	-24.32%	-2.7
Georgia	19.6	17.9	16.7	17.4	15.7	13.5	13.3	-47.37%	-6.3
Hawaii	18.3	14.5	14	13.8	14	13.4	12.9	-41.86%	-5.4
Idaho	10.7	10	9.6	9.9	9.7	9.6	10.4	-2.88%	-0.3
Illinois	19	18.8	17.5	17.8	17.7	16.7	17.9	-6.15%	-1.1
Indiana	36.6	35.6	31.9	33.4	32.1	29.8	30.4	-20.39%	-6.2
Iowa	28.3	29	27.2	28.5	27.4	25.5	25.8	-9.69%	-2.5
Kansas	28.6	27.3	26.5	26.3	25.6	23.9	25.1	-13.94%	-3.5
Kentucky	36.7	35.8	33.2	34.5	33.9	31.4	31.1	-18.01%	-5.6
Louisiana	51.7	48.8	43.7	47.4	47.3	44	42	-23.10%	-9.7
Maine	15.6	14.1	13.6	13.4	13	11.7	12.2	-27.87%	-3.4
Maryland	13.5	12.8	12.1	11.7	10.8	9.9	9.7	-39.18%	-3.8
Massachusetts	12.3	11.7	10.6	10.7	10.1	9.1	9.7	-26.80%	-2.6
Michigan	18	17.4	16.4	16.5	16	15.3	16.2	-11.11%	-1.8
Minnesota	19.2	18.9	17.3	17.2	17	16	16.3	-17.79%	-2.9
Mississippi	23.2	21.8	20.3	21.9	20.2	20.7	20.1	-15.42%	-3.1
Missouri	23.7	23	21.8	22.3	22.3	21	21.7	-9.22%	-2
Montana	38.8	37.6	33.3	34.7	31.6	30.1	31.3	-23.96%	-7.5
Nebraska	24.9	25.8	25.9	27	28.1	27	28.4	12.32%	3.5
Nevada	15.9	15.2	14.5	13.7	12.2	12.3	12.8	-24.22%	-3.1
New Hampshire	14.4	14	12.7	12.3	12	10.7	10.5	-37.14%	-3.9
New Jersey	14.9	14.6	12.5	12.7	12.8	11.5	11.8	-26.27%	-3.1
New Mexico	29.5	28.3	28.3	26.1	27	26	25.8	-14.34%	-3.7
New York	10.3	9.8	8.9	8.8	8.3	8.1	8.1	-27.16%	-2.2
North Carolina	16.8	15.8	13.9	14.7	13.1	12.2	12.4	-35.48%	-4.4
North Dakota	80.2	80.1	77	77.1	78.1	79.5	78.2	-2.56%	-2
Ohio	23.3	22.7	20.5	21.4	20.4	18.6	19.8	-17.68%	-3.5
Oklahoma	30	30.4	28.4	28	28.3	27.3	26.8	-11.94%	-3.2
Oregon	11.6	11.2	10.5	10.4	9.4	9.3	9.8	-18.37%	-1.8
Pennsylvania	22	21.2	19.2	20	19.3	18.5	19.1	-15.18%	-2.9
Rhode Island	10.3	10	10.5	10.3	10.3	9.8	9.5	-8.42%	-0.8
South Carolina	19.8	18.9	17.5	17.9	16.9	15.3	14.5	-36.55%	-5.3
South Dakota	17.4	18.6	18	18.2	17.5	17.7	17.9	2.79%	0.5
Tennessee	20.7	19.4	16	17	16.4	15.2	14.9	-38.93%	-5.8
Texas	26.1	24.5	22.7	23.6	24	23.5	24.2	-7.85%	-1.9
Utah	26.9	25.9	23.6	22.9	22.7	21.4	22.9	-17.47%	-4
Vermont	10.3	9.3	9.6	9.1	9	8.5	8.9	-15.73%	-1.4
Virginia	16.3	14.7	13.1	13.3	12	11.7	12.5	-30.40%	-3.8
Washington	12.5	11.8	11.3	11	10.1	10	10.5	-19.05%	-2
West Virginia	63	60.5	48.2	53.6	52.1	49.1	50.3	-25.25%	-12.7
Wisconsin	18.5	18.5	16.8	17.1	16.9	15.6	17.3	-6.94%	-1.2
Wyoming	124.1	122.3	113.6	115.4	112.6	114.8	117.3	-5.80%	-6.8
Average of all states	19.7	18.8	17.3	17.8	17.2	16.4	16.7	-17.96%	-3.0
Source: U.S. Energy Information Administration, "Per capita energy-related carbon dioxide emissions by state (2000-2013)"

Per capita emissions (2000-2006)

The table below summarizes per capita CO₂ emissions from energy use for each state between 2000 and 2006.

The per capita average of all states decreased between 2000 and 2006, from 20.7 metric tons in 2000 to 19.6 metric tons in 2006—a decrease of 5.61 percent.

Thirty-nine states saw their per capita emissions decrease from 2000 to 2006. The largest percentage decrease occurred in Nevada (38.04 percent), Washington (18.49 percent) and Texas (16.04 percent). The largest absolute decrease occurred in Nevada (-6.2 metric tons), Wyoming (-5.4 metric tons) and Texas (-4.3 metric tons).

Eleven states saw their per capita emissions increase from 2000 to 2006. The largest percentage increase occurred in Hawaii (12.92 percent), Montana (7.22 percent) and Missouri (7.05 percent). The same three states also had the largest absolute increase in per capita emissions—Montana had the largest total absolute increase (2.7 metric tons), followed by Hawaii (2.6 metric tons) and Missouri (1.7 metric tons).

Per capita CO2 emissions by state, 2000–2006 (in metric tons)
State	2000	2001	2002	2003	2004	2005	2006	Percentage change	Absolute change
Alabama	31.9	29.9	30.9	30.9	31.2	31.3	31.3	-1.92%	-0.6
Alaska	70.6	68.4	67.8	67.3	70.9	72	67.7	-4.28%	-2.9
Arizona	16.7	16.7	16.2	16.2	17	16.5	16.5	-1.21%	-0.2
Arkansas	23.8	23.3	22.6	22.7	22.6	21.6	21.9	-8.68%	-1.9
California	11.2	11.2	11	10.6	11	10.8	10.9	-2.75%	-0.3
Colorado	19.5	20.9	20.2	19.9	20.3	20.5	20.3	3.94%	0.8
Connecticut	12.6	12.1	11.6	12.2	12.7	12.5	11.6	-8.62%	-1
Delaware	21.2	20.2	19.7	20.1	19.9	20.5	18.8	-12.77%	-2.4
Florida	14.9	14.6	14.5	14.4	14.7	14.5	14.1	-5.67%	-0.8
Georgia	20.5	19.2	19.5	19.6	19.8	20.6	19.8	-3.54%	-0.7
Hawaii	15.5	15.7	16.5	17.2	17.7	17.9	17.8	12.92%	2.3
Idaho	12.1	11.8	11.2	10.5	11.2	11	10.7	-13.08%	-1.4
Illinois	18.8	18	18.1	18.3	18.8	19.3	18.5	-1.62%	-0.3
Indiana	39.1	37.3	37.6	38.3	38.1	37.6	37	-5.68%	-2.1
Iowa	26.5	26.1	26.2	26	26.6	26.5	26.7	0.75%	0.2
Kansas	28.3	26.6	28.3	28.8	27.6	26.2	26.1	-8.43%	-2.2
Kentucky	36	36.7	36.5	35.3	36.5	36.7	37.1	2.96%	1.1
Louisiana	51.4	45.1	46.7	45.7	47.7	45.9	51.6	0.39%	0.2
Maine	17.5	17.5	18.5	18	18.2	17.5	15.9	-10.06%	-1.6
Maryland	14.6	14.5	14.3	14.6	14.7	14.9	13.6	-7.35%	-1
Massachusetts	13	12.9	12.9	13.1	12.9	13.1	11.8	-10.17%	-1.2
Michigan	19.5	19	18.9	18.5	18.7	18.9	17.8	-9.55%	-1.7
Minnesota	19.8	19	19.4	20	19.8	19.8	19.1	-3.66%	-0.7
Mississippi	21.6	24.6	21.9	22.4	22.7	22	22.7	4.85%	1.1
Missouri	22.4	23.3	23.3	24.3	24.3	24.7	24.1	7.05%	1.7
Montana	34.7	35.2	33.6	35.6	37	37.7	37.4	7.22%	2.7
Nebraska	24.2	24.9	24.5	24.9	24.7	24.7	24.9	2.81%	0.7
Nevada	22.5	21.3	19	19.3	20.3	20.4	16.3	-38.04%	-6.2
New Hampshire	14.1	13.5	13.9	16.3	16.9	16.3	14.7	4.08%	0.6
New Jersey	14.7	14.2	14.2	14.3	14.5	15	14.1	-4.26%	-0.6
New Mexico	31.9	31.8	29.8	30.6	30.7	30.6	30.4	-4.93%	-1.5
New York	11.2	10.9	10.5	11	11.2	11	10	-12.00%	-1.2
North Carolina	18.4	17.6	17.5	17.3	17.4	17.6	16.5	-11.52%	-1.9
North Dakota	79.2	80.9	80.5	79.7	76.7	81.1	78	-1.54%	-1.2
Ohio	23.4	22.5	23	23.6	23.1	23.6	23	-1.74%	-0.4
Oklahoma	29	29.3	29.1	29.6	28.3	30.1	30.6	5.23%	1.6
Oregon	12	11.7	11.1	11.1	11.4	11.3	10.9	-10.09%	-1.1
Pennsylvania	22.6	21.5	22	22.2	22.3	22.5	21.9	-3.20%	-0.7
Rhode Island	11.2	11.6	11	10.7	10.1	10.4	9.8	-14.29%	-1.4
South Carolina	20.3	19.7	19.8	19.7	21.2	20.5	20.2	-0.50%	-0.1
South Dakota	18.7	17.8	18.1	17.9	17.8	17.1	17	-10.00%	-1.7
Tennessee	22.4	22	21.7	21.2	21.2	21.2	21.2	-5.66%	-1.2
Texas	31.1	30.3	30.2	29.4	28.6	27.1	26.8	-16.04%	-4.3
Utah	29	27.6	26.7	26.6	27.2	27.2	27	-7.41%	-2
Vermont	11	10.8	10.3	10.6	11.3	10.9	10.6	-3.77%	-0.4
Virginia	17.3	16.8	16.3	16.7	17	17	15.9	-8.81%	-1.4
Washington	14.1	13.3	12.1	12.3	12.4	12.5	11.9	-18.49%	-2.2
West Virginia	63.6	58.2	65.1	63	61.3	62.2	62.1	-2.42%	-1.5
Wisconsin	20.1	19.6	19.6	19.1	19.4	19.9	18.4	-9.24%	-1.7
Wyoming	127.8	128.1	124.2	127.2	125.5	123	122.4	-4.41%	-5.4
Average of all states	20.7	20.1	20.0	20.0	20.2	20.1	19.6	-5.61%	-1.1
Source: U.S. Energy Information Administration, "Per capita energy-related carbon dioxide emissions by state (2000-2013)"

Emissions by fuel source

Overview

Each state's emissions differ due to the types of fuel that are consumed. For example, in West Virginia, 78 percent of its emissions came from coal, while in California, just 1 percent of its emissions came from coal while over 61 percent came from petroleum.

State carbon dioxide emissions by fuel

The table below summarizes each state's energy-related CO₂ emissions by fuel in 2013 (the most recent year for which data is available).

Coal accounted for 32.2 percent of all energy-related CO₂ emissions. The states with the largest percentage of coal-based emissions were West Virginia (78 percent), Wyoming (71.9 percent) and North Dakota (65.5 percent). The states with the lowest percentage of coal-based emissions were Rhode Island (0 percent), Vermont (0 percent) and California (1 percent).

Petroleum accounted for 41.1 percent of all energy-related CO₂ emissions. The states with the largest percentage of petroleum-based emissions were Hawaii (92 percent), Vermont (90.9 percent) and Maine (77.4 percent). The states with the lowest percentage of petroleum-based emissions were West Virginia (13.4 percent), Wyoming (16 percent) and Indiana (25.5 percent).

Natural gas accounted for 26.7 percent of all energy-related CO₂ emissions. The states with the largest percentage of natural gas-based emissions were Alaska (48.9 percent), Rhode Island (47.1 percent) and New York (43.7 percent). The states with the lowest percentage of natural gas-based emissions were Hawaii (0.1 percent), North Dakota (7.9 percent) and West Virginia (8.6 percent).

State energy-related CO2 emissions by fuel (2013)
CO2 emissions (in million metric tons)					Percentage
State	Coal	Petroleum	Natural gas	Total	Coal	Petroleum	Natural gas
Alabama	53.3	33.2	33.3	119.8	44.4%	27.7%	27.8%
Alaska	1.4	17	17.7	36.1	3.9%	47.2%	48.9%
Arizona	43	32.8	18.1	93.8	45.8%	34.9%	19.3%
Arkansas	30.9	21.6	15.3	67.8	45.5%	31.9%	22.5%
California	3.6	217.7	131.8	353.1	1.0%	61.7%	37.3%
Colorado	34.3	30.6	25.6	90.5	37.9%	33.8%	28.2%
Connecticut	0.7	20.8	12.7	34.3	2.1%	60.8%	37.1%
Delaware	1.7	6.3	5.3	13.4	12.9%	47.3%	39.9%
Florida	47.7	103.9	66.1	217.6	21.9%	47.7%	30.4%
Georgia	40.2	58.6	33.7	132.5	30.4%	44.2%	25.4%
Hawaii	1.4	16.8	0	18.2	7.9%	92.0%	0.1%
Idaho	0.7	10.3	5.7	16.7	4.5%	61.6%	34.0%
Illinois	96.8	76.9	56.4	230.2	42.1%	33.4%	24.5%
Indiana	112.8	50.9	36.1	199.8	56.5%	25.5%	18.1%
Iowa	38	25.7	16.3	79.9	47.5%	32.2%	20.3%
Kansas	30.9	26.6	15.3	72.8	42.4%	36.5%	21.1%
Kentucky	86.4	38.1	12.5	137	63.0%	27.8%	9.1%
Louisiana	21.5	95.9	77	194.5	11.1%	49.3%	39.6%
Maine	0.2	12.6	3.5	16.2	1.0%	77.5%	21.6%
Maryland	17.3	29.6	11	57.9	29.9%	51.2%	18.9%
Massachusetts	4	37.2	24.1	65.3	6.1%	57.0%	36.9%
Michigan	62.1	54	44.1	160.2	38.7%	33.7%	27.6%
Minnesota	25.3	38	25.4	88.6	28.5%	42.8%	28.7%
Mississippi	9.2	28.2	22.7	60.1	15.3%	46.9%	37.8%
Missouri	76.2	40.2	14.9	131.3	58.0%	30.6%	11.4%
Montana	15.7	11.7	4.4	31.7	49.4%	36.8%	13.8%
Nebraska	27.7	15.8	9.5	53	52.1%	29.9%	18.0%
Nevada	6.1	14.7	15	35.8	17.1%	41.0%	41.9%
New Hampshire	1.6	9.4	3	13.9	11.4%	67.5%	21.2%
New Jersey	2.4	64.8	37.8	105.1	2.3%	61.7%	36.0%
New Mexico	24.2	16.2	13.4	53.9	44.9%	30.1%	24.9%
New York	6.5	83.7	70.1	160.3	4.0%	52.2%	43.7%
North Carolina	46.6	52.1	23.6	122.4	38.1%	42.6%	19.3%
North Dakota	37.1	15.1	4.4	56.6	65.5%	26.6%	7.9%
Ohio	104	74.4	50.2	228.7	45.5%	32.6%	21.9%
Oklahoma	31.7	35.1	36.2	103.1	30.8%	34.1%	35.2%
Oregon	3.7	21.7	13	38.4	9.6%	56.7%	33.8%
Pennsylvania	105.9	77.1	60.8	243.9	43.4%	31.6%	24.9%
Rhode Island	0	5.3	4.7	10	0.0%	52.9%	47.1%
South Carolina	24.3	32.3	12.6	69.2	35.1%	46.7%	18.2%
South Dakota	3.2	7.4	4.5	15.2	21.3%	49.1%	29.6%
Tennessee	37.7	43.8	15.2	96.7	39.0%	45.3%	15.7%
Texas	150.8	280.9	209.2	641	23.5%	43.8%	32.6%
Utah	33.5	19.1	13.7	66.4	50.5%	28.8%	20.7%
Vermont	0	5.1	0.5	5.6	0.0%	90.8%	9.2%
Virginia	27.3	52.6	23	103	26.6%	51.1%	22.3%
Washington	7.1	48.7	17.4	73.1	9.7%	66.5%	23.8%
West Virginia	72.8	12.5	8	93.3	78.0%	13.4%	8.6%
Wisconsin	42.9	32.7	23.9	99.5	43.1%	32.9%	24.0%
Wyoming	49.2	11	8.3	68.4	71.9%	16.0%	12.1%
United States total†	1,701.7	2,167.9	1,409	5,278.6	32.2%	41.1%	26.7%
Source: U.S. Energy Information Administration, "2013 state energy-related carbon dioxide emissions by fuel" †Note: The total for all states is different from the national-level estimate due to differing methodologies between the two data series.

Emissions by sector

Overview

In 2013, carbon dioxide emissions from energy use in the United States totaled 5,278 million metric tons. Nationwide, the electric power sector accounted for 2,021.6 million metric tons of emissions (38.3 percent) followed by the transportation sector with 1,740.3 million metric tons (33 percent).

State-specific information

The states with the largest percentage of emissions from the commercial sector were New York (14.1 percent), Vermont (13.6 percent) and Connecticut (10.4 percent). The states with the largest absolute number of emissions from the commercial sector were New York (22.6 million metric tons), California (16 million metric tons) and Illinois (13.5 million metric tons).

The states with the largest percentage of emissions from the electric power sector were West Virginia (73.7 percent), Wyoming (67.6 percent) and Kentucky (62.8 percent). The states with the largest absolute number of emissions from the electric power sector were Texas (226.2 million metric tons), Pennsylvania (105.9 million metric tons) and Florida (104.6 million metric tons).

The states with the largest percentage of emissions from the residential sector were Vermont (22,7 percent), Rhode Island (22.4 percent) and Connecticut (21 percent). The states with the largest absolute number of emissions from the residential sector were New York (31.9 million metric tons), California (27.7 million metric tons) and Illinois (25.8 million metric tons).

The states with the largest percentage of emissions from the industrial sector were Louisiana (54.2 percent), Alaska (48.4 percent) and Texas (29.5 percent). The states with the largest absolute number of emissions from the industrial sector were Texas (189.1 million metric tons), Louisiana (105.4 million metric tons) and California (72.9 million metric tons).

The states with the largest percentage of emissions from the transportation sector were Vermont (56.4 percent), Washington (54.5 percent) and California (54 percent). The states with the largest absolute number of emissions from the transportation sector were Texas (201.8 million metric tons), California (190.8 million metric tons) and Florida (95.8 million metric tons).

The table below summarizes each state's CO₂ emissions by sector in 2013.

CO2 emissions by sector, 2013 (in million metric tons)
State	Commercial		Electric power		Residential		Industrial		Transportation
	Total	Percent	Total	Percent	Total	Percent	Total	Percent	Total	Percent
Alabama	1.8	1.5%	64.2	53.6%	2.2	1.8%	21.3	17.8%	30.3	25.3%
Alaska	2.4	6.6%	2.6	7.3%	1.6	4.3%	17.5	48.4%	12	33.3%
Arizona	2.4	2.5%	54.7	58.3%	2.4	2.6%	4.5	4.8%	29.8	31.8%
Arkansas	2.8	4.2%	35.5	52.4%	2.2	3.3%	9.3	13.6%	18	26.5%
California	16	4.5%	45.7	12.9%	27.7	7.9%	72.9	20.7%	190.8	54.0%
Colorado	3.7	4.1%	38.6	42.6%	8.2	9.0%	13.9	15.3%	26.3	29.0%
Connecticut	3.6	10.4%	6.8	19.8%	7.2	21.0%	2.3	6.8%	14.4	42.1%
Delaware	0.8	5.7%	4.1	30.2%	0.9	7.0%	3.7	27.8%	3.9	29.3%
Florida	5.1	2.4%	104.6	48.1%	1.2	0.5%	11	5.0%	95.8	44.0%
Georgia	4	3.0%	53.6	40.5%	7.1	5.3%	14.4	10.8%	53.5	40.4%
Hawaii	0.3	1.4%	6.8	37.0%	0.1	0.3%	1.5	8.3%	9.6	52.8%
Idaho	1.3	7.5%	1.3	7.9%	1.9	11.1%	3.5	20.8%	8.8	52.7%
Illinois	13.5	5.8%	89	38.7%	25.8	11.2%	40.3	17.5%	61.6	26.8%
Indiana	5.4	2.7%	98.4	49.3%	8.7	4.4%	46.4	23.2%	40.9	20.5%
Iowa	4.5	5.7%	32.2	40.2%	4.8	6.0%	18.9	23.7%	19.6	24.5%
Kansas	2	2.7%	32	44.0%	4.2	5.7%	15.8	21.7%	18.8	25.9%
Kentucky	2.4	1.7%	86.1	62.8%	3.4	2.5%	16.2	11.8%	29	21.1%
Louisiana	1.8	0.9%	40.8	21.0%	2.2	1.1%	105.4	54.2%	44.4	22.8%
Maine	1.6	10.0%	1.4	8.9%	2.4	14.7%	2.4	14.8%	8.4	51.5%
Maryland	4.7	8.1%	17.4	30.0%	6.2	10.7%	2.6	4.4%	27	46.7%
Massachusetts	6.2	9.6%	12.6	19.3%	13.6	20.8%	3.8	5.8%	29.1	44.6%
Michigan	10.3	6.4%	62.1	38.8%	20.7	12.9%	20.5	12.8%	46.7	29.1%
Minnesota	6.7	7.6%	25.7	29.0%	9.3	10.4%	18.3	20.6%	28.7	32.4%
Mississippi	1.4	2.4%	21.6	35.9%	1.7	2.8%	11.3	18.8%	24.1	40.0%
Missouri	4.3	3.2%	75.8	57.7%	6.7	5.1%	9.1	7.0%	35.5	27.0%
Montana	1.3	4.0%	16.4	51.8%	1.6	4.9%	4.7	14.7%	7.8	24.6%
Nebraska	2	3.7%	26	49.1%	2.7	5.1%	9.3	17.5%	13	24.6%
Nevada	1.9	5.4%	15.4	43.0%	2.5	6.9%	2.4	6.7%	13.6	38.1%
New Hampshire	1.3	9.2%	3.3	23.5%	2.3	16.4%	0.8	5.7%	6.3	45.2%
New Jersey	10.5	10.0%	14.4	13.7%	14.7	14.0%	9.7	9.2%	55.8	53.1%
New Mexico	1.7	3.1%	28.2	52.4%	2.3	4.3%	8.4	15.6%	13.3	24.6%
New York	22.6	14.1%	30	18.7%	31.9	19.9%	9.5	5.9%	66.2	41.3%
North Carolina	4.3	3.5%	55.5	45.4%	5.2	4.2%	10.7	8.8%	46.7	38.2%
North Dakota	1.5	2.7%	28.7	50.7%	1.1	1.9%	16.1	28.4%	9.2	16.3%
Ohio	10.9	4.8%	101.6	44.4%	18	7.9%	38.3	16.8%	59.9	26.2%
Oklahoma	2.8	2.7%	44.2	42.9%	4.1	4.0%	22.2	21.5%	29.8	28.9%
Oregon	1.8	4.8%	9	23.6%	2.8	7.2%	4.7	12.3%	20	52.1%
Pennsylvania	10.1	4.1%	105.9	43.4%	19.7	8.1%	49.6	20.3%	58.6	24.0%
Rhode Island	0.9	9.1%	2.6	25.8%	2.2	22.4%	0.6	5.7%	3.7	37.1%
South Carolina	1.7	2.4%	28.2	40.8%	1.9	2.7%	7.9	11.5%	29.5	42.7%
South Dakota	0.8	5.2%	3.1	20.7%	1.1	7.3%	3.9	25.9%	6.2	41.0%
Tennessee	3.5	3.6%	33.6	34.7%	4.2	4.4%	16.5	17.1%	38.9	40.2%
Texas	11.5	1.8%	226.2	35.3%	12.4	1.9%	189.1	29.5%	201.8	31.5%
Utah	2.7	4.1%	34.9	52.6%	4.1	6.1%	8.3	12.5%	16.5	24.8%
Vermont	0.8	13.6%	0	0.2%	1.3	22.7%	0.4	7.1%	3.2	56.4%
Virginia	4.9	4.8%	30.9	30.0%	6.5	6.3%	12.9	12.5%	47.8	46.4%
Washington	3.8	5.2%	11.7	15.9%	5.3	7.2%	12.6	17.2%	39.8	54.5%
West Virginia	1.6	1.7%	68.7	73.7%	1.9	2.0%	10.4	11.1%	10.7	11.5%
Wisconsin	5.8	5.8%	43.3	43.5%	9.8	9.8%	14	14.1%	26.7	26.8%
Wyoming	1.1	1.6%	46.2	67.6%	1	1.4%	12.6	18.4%	7.6	11.0%
U.S. total	221.5	4.2%	2,021.6	38.3%	333.2	6.3%	962.1	18.2%	1,740.3	33%
Sources: U.S. Energy Information Administration, "2013 state energy-related carbon dioxide emissions by sector" U.S. Energy Information Administration, "2013 state energy-related carbon dioxide emission shares by sector"

See also

• 

  Environmental policy in the U.S.

• 

  Energy policy in the U.S.

• 

  Endangered species policy in the U.S.

• Climate change
• Opposing views of climate change theory
• State activity on climate change
• Greenhouse gas

Footnotes

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