Climate Action
How Do Buildings Contribute to Greenhouse Gas Emissions?
September 6, 2013
This edition of the Carbon Pollution, Climate Policy and the Built Environment blog series will focus on U.S. buildings. The generation of electricity is the largest source of U.S. greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions and the number one source of energy consumption for U.S. buildings. According to the Department of Energy’s buildings energy data book, U.S. buildings account for 39% of primary energy consumption and 72% of all electricity consumed domestically. Buildings accounted for more energy use than the entire U.S. transportation sector in 2006 and produced more greenhouse gases than any other country in the world except China. The two most common sources of energy for buildings are purchased electricity and direct consumption of natural gas and petroleum for heating and cooking. Electricity accounts for approximately 78% of total building energy consumption and largely contributes to GHG emissions. According to EPA, GHG emissions from electricity have increased by about 18% since 1990, as the demand for electricity has grown and fossil fuel has remained the dominant source for generation. The amount of energy consumed has quadrupled since 1940, while the population roughly doubled. A sharp increase in housing units has also contributed to this trend. There were 140 million housing units in 2011, an increase of more than 250% since 1940.