You can electronically download this document on the U.S. EPA\u2019s Climate Change homepage at <http://epa.gov/climatechange/ emissions/usinventoryreport.html>. To request free copies of this report, call the National Service Center for Environmental Publications (NSCEP) at (800) 490\u20139198, or visit the NSCEP web site at <http://www.epa.gov/nscep/>.
The photos on the front and back cover of this report depict the eight largest key categories from the 1990\u20132005 Inventory. The IPCC\u2019s Good Practice Guidance (IPCC 2000) de\ue000nes a key category as a \u201c[source or sink category] that is prioritized within the national inventory system because its estimate has a signi\ue000cant in\ue001uence on a country\u2019s total inventory of direct greenhouse gases in terms of the absolute level of emissions, the trend in emissions, or both.\u201d By de\ue000nition, key categories are sources or sinks that have the greatest contribution to the absolute overall level of national emissions in any of the years covered by the time series. Key category names can differ from those used elsewhere in the inventory report, due to naming conventions necessary to comply with UNFCCC reporting guidelines.
Rather than being combusted for energy, fuels consumed for non-energy purposes act as building blocks or reagents in fabricating other materials. These fossil-fuel-derived materials are important from an emissions perspective since they often provide long-term storage of the fuel\u2019s carbon. Emissions from this source have increased 21 percent since 1990.
Agricultural soil management is the largest single source of nitrous oxide emissions in the United States, accounting for 5 percent of U.S. greenhouse gas emissions in 2005. Direct soil nitrous oxide emissions depend on the amounts of nitrogen inputs such as fertilizer and crop residues added to soils, as well as on temperature, precipitation, and other factors. Emissions from this source \ue001uctuate from year to year depending on weather and nitrogen inputs, and have not changed signi\ue000cantly since 1990.
Carbon dioxide emissions from combustion of oil in stationary applications account for approximately 9 percent of U.S. greenhouse gas emissions in 2005. Stationary applications that most commonly burn oil include industrial boilers, residential and commercial furnaces, and electric power plants. Emissions from this source have increased 7 percent since 1990.
Carbon dioxide emissions from combustion of natural gas in stationary applications accounted for approximately 16 percent of U.S. greenhouse gas emissions in 2005. Stationary applications that most commonly burn natural gas include residential and commercial furnaces and stoves, electric power plants, and industrial furnaces and boilers. Emissions from this source have increased 17 percent since 1990.
Land\ue000lls are the largest single anthropogenic source of methane emissions in the United States. In an environment where the oxygen content is low or nonexistent (i.e. anaerobic), organic materials such as yard waste, household waste, food waste, and paper are decomposed by bacteria, resulting in the generation of methane. Emissions from this source have decreased 18 percent since 1990, due mostly to greater collection and combustion of land\ue000ll gas.
Fossil fuel combustion in airplanes and other aircraft resulted in approximately 3 percent of U.S. greenhouse gas emissions in 2005. The main types of fuel burned in aircraft are kerosene-type jet fuel and aviation gasoline. Kerosene jet fuel is the primary fuel used for civil aviation (i.e., most commercial aircraft) and aviation gasoline is most commonly used in general aviation (i.e., small recreational and corporate aircraft). Emissions from this source have increased 3 percent since 1990.
Fossil fuel combustion in road and non-road vehicles accounted for approximately 23 percent of U.S. greenhouse gas emissions in 2005. Almost all of the energy consumed for transportation was supplied by petroleum-based products. Since the 1970s, the number of highway vehicles registered in the United States has increased faster than the overall population; the number of miles driven and the gallons of gasoline consumed each year in the United States have increased steadily since the 1980s. Emissions from this source have increased 33 percent since 1990.
Carbon dioxide emissions from combustion of natural gas in stationary applications accounted for approximately 29 percent of U.S. greenhouse gas emissions in 2005. The vast majority of coal burned in the United States is consumed in electric power generation. Coal is also used in industrial boilers, and in small amounts in residential and commercial applications. Emissions from this source have increased 23 percent since 1990.
