U.S. Greenhouse Gases Declining

Improvement is a good thing.

U.S. marks greenhouse gas decline

For the first time since 2001, carbon emissions were less than the year before, the Bush administration reports.

By James Gerstenzang,
Los Angeles Times Staff Writer
November 29, 2007

WASHINGTON -- The Bush administration reported a small drop in greenhouse gas emissions for the United States last year, the first decline since 2001, but the emissions still represented a sizable increase over the last decade and a half.The gases, including carbon dioxide, are widely blamed for global warming.

The Energy Information Administration said that in 2006 the United States released 1.5% fewer tons than in 2005. The increase over 1990, which is used as a base year in international deliberations on long-range targets for gas reductions, was 15.1%.

The White House drew attention to the decline on...(complete article here).

What is remarkable is that the economy grew at a rate of 3.9% during the 3rd Quarter of 2007 and has grown at an annual rate of 2.8% average since 2001 according to the White House. The growth rate for 2006 was 6.1% in current dollars or 2.9% in 2000 dollars.

We reduced "greenhouse" emissions by 1.5% while the economy grew at a very healthy 6.1%. That is very positive. I wonder if the greenhouse gases emitted in China which haunt our west coast are considered in this.