2023 US Greenhouse Emissions Down, Economy Up
In a preliminary report by the Rhodium Group, the US GDP expanded by a projected 2.4 % as 2023 greenhouse gas emissions were down by 1.9 % across the economy, from 2022 levels. The report says that in 2023 the winter was relatively mild and emissions from coal fired power plants were down. That said, industrial emissions were up by 1 % and in the transportation sector, fuel consumption was below pre-pandemic levels while transportation emissions were up by 1.6 %. The uptick in transportation emissions is attributed mostly to a rebound of jet fuel consumption after the pandemic.
Driving the overall decrease in 2023 emissions was an 8 % decrease in the power sector and a 4 % drop in greenhouse gas emissions from commercial and residential buildings.
Ominously, natural gas power generation grew twice as fast in 2023 as did renewable generation. Oil and gas production is expected to rise in 2024.
Wind turbine installations are on track for one half to one third of the previous year, but utility-scale battery installations are projected to have a good year in 2023.
The bulk of industrial emissions was attributed to leaking, venting and flaring of methane and CO2 during production and transportation of oil and gas in 2023. Just an FYI: natural gas leaks can be fixed but in oil and gas production there are places in the process where pressure arising from volatiles like methane must be relieved for safety purposes.
This can be done with venting the pressure into the air or by flaring the gases. A big problem with venting flammable natural gas or other volatiles from equipment is the possibility of a fire or explosion. Flaring is a common way of avoiding this hazard. Flaring catches everyone’s attention as an obvious source of pollution and it is. What it should tell you is that problematic volatiles are being discharged and burned. At least it converts natural gas into CO2 which is the lesser of two evils as far as greenhouse potential.
Running vented natural gas into a gas pipeline poses many practical problems. For the many remote locations, where does the gas go? Refineries tend to cluster around seaports. Unusable natural gas is called “stranded gas.” Building an extensive network of gas pipelines from gas fields is not economically feasible in most cases. Liquifying natural gas to a smaller volume of liquid for over-the-road trucking is a great idea but there is an immediate and expensive problem. Liquifying natural gas to LNG requires refrigeration. Retrofitting existing upstream gas field equipment is a nonstarter due to cost.
Reducing fossil fuel consumption will do the trick. Less demand, less production, and less fugitive emissions of greenhouse gases. Sadly, our stone age emotions haven’t caught up with our modern technology. Liquid fossil fuels are energy dense and can easily be piped to where they are needed. This provides immediate gratification of our desires. Need cigarettes and beer? Hop in the F250 and drive 5 miles to the 7/11.