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EIA: CO2 emissions from US power sector have declined 28% since 2005

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The power sector has become less carbon-intensive as natural gas-fired generation displaced coal-fired and petroleum-fired generation and as the noncarbon sources of electricity generation—especially renewables such as wind and solar—have grown. In 2005, noncarbon sources accounted for 28% of the US electricity mix.

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EIA: US energy-related CO2 fell by 2.8% in 2019, slightly below 2017 levels

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Overall, US energy-related CO 2 emissions have fallen 15% from their peak of 6,003 MMmt in 2007. CO 2 emissions from coal fell by 14.6%, the largest annual percentage drop in any fuel’s CO 2 emissions in EIA’s annual CO 2 data series dating back to 1973. The United States now emits less CO 2 from coal than from motor gasoline.

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University of Calgary Study Finds Large-Scale Adoption of PHEVs in Alberta Could Support Wind Power; PHEV GHG Benefits Range from 40-90% in Emissions Reduction

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The study found the environmental impacts of PHEVs in Alberta would depend on factors such as vehicle battery size, charging time and wind production levels. Of the installed capacity of just above 12,000 MW, approximately 49% (5,893 MW) is coal fired, 39% (4,686 MW) is gas-fired, 7% (869 MW) is hydro, and 4% (497 MW) is wind powered.

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EIA: US energy-related CO2 dropped 2.7% in 2015; of end-use sectors, only transportation increased

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Specific circumstances, such as the very warm fourth quarter of 2015 and relatively low natural gas prices, put downward pressure on emissions as natural gas was substituted for coal in electricity generation. Coal’s share of total electricity generation in the power sector fell from 54% in 1990 to 34% in 2015. between 2014 and 2015.

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MIT Report Finds Natural Gas Has Significant Potential to Displace Coal, Reducing Greenhouse Gas Emissions; Role in Transportation More Limited

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Natural gas will play a leading role in reducing greenhouse-gas emissions over the next several decades, largely by replacing older, inefficient coal plants with highly efficient combined-cycle gas generation, according to a major new interim report out from MIT. The first two reports dealt with nuclear power (2003) and coal (2007).

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BNEF: Oil price plunge to have only moderate impact on low-carbon electricity development, but likely to slow EV growth

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Wind and solar have been exhibiting very rapid growth, even as subsidies and support have in general become less generous, and that has been driven mainly by dramatic improvements to their cost-competitiveness, as well as by the removal of barriers such as grid bottlenecks. Oil at $60/barrel could mean a natural gas price as much as $0.90/MMBtu

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Technical brief: transportation overtaking electricity generation as the largest source of US CO2 emissions

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per year over 2007-2015 due to the displacement of coal by natural gas, wind and solar for power production as well as energy efficiency gains. Click to enlarge. Further, electric sector CO 2 emissions have dropped greatly in recent years, declining at an average rate of 2.8%