Treibhausgasemissionen nach Kongressbezirken
1. September 2022
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Thema 1: Emissionen nach Kongressbezirken
Die US-Wirtschaft ist stark regional spezialisiert und wirtschaftlich komplex. Dies wird deutlich, wenn man die direkten Treibhausgasemissionen der Kongresswahlkreise betrachtet. Laut den Daten der US-Umweltschutzbehörde (EPA) stammen 75 % der 2,3 Milliarden Tonnen direkter CO2e-Emissionen des Jahres 2020 aus Kongresswahlkreisen, die derzeit von republikanischen Abgeordneten vertreten werden.
The EPA defines direct GhG emissions as emissions that “are controlled or owned by an organization (e.g., emissions associated with fuel combustion in boilers, furnaces, vehicles).” Direct emissions do not include GhG emissions associated with the purchase of utilities regardless if these emissions occur at the facility where they are generated or GHG emissions that are the result of activities indirectly impacted by the organization in its value chain. This dataset from the GHGRP includes only reported direct emissions and represents 85% to 90% of U.S. GhG emissions. The Inventory of U.S. Greenhouse Gas Emissions and Sinks is an annual report by the EPA that represents total U.S. emissions and estimates the total greenhouse gas emissions across all sectors of the economy using national-level data.
Thema 2: Die wirtschaftliche Komplexität der USA spiegelt sich in den Emissionsdaten wider
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Im Jahr 2020 war die US-Wirtschaft die neuntkomplexeste Volkswirtschaft der Welt, was durch das Dashboard mit 41 Branchenkategorien belegt wird. Mehr als 8.000 Anlagen repräsentieren schätzungsweise 85 bis 90 % der US-Treibhausgasemissionen und sind für mehr als 25.000 Tonnen CO2e pro Jahr verantwortlich. Die meisten kleinen Unternehmen liegen unter der Schwelle von 25.000 Tonnen und melden daher nicht an die US-Umweltschutzbehörde EPA.
Die wirtschaftliche Komplexität der USA kann auch durch die Linse der Exporte und Importe betrachtet werden. Im Jahr 2020 waren die führenden Exporte und Importe der USA:
Exporte
Raffiniertes Erdöl: 54,8 Milliarden US-Dollar.
Erdölgas: 34,7 Milliarden US-Dollar.
Medizinische Instrumente: 27,7 Milliarden US-Dollar.
Gasturbinen: 27,3 Milliarden US-Dollar.
Flugzeugteile: 12,5 Milliarden US-Dollar.
Importe
Autos: 144 Milliarden Dollar.
Computer: 92,4 Milliarden US-Dollar.
Verpackte Medikamente: 84,1 Milliarden US-Dollar.
Rundfunkausrüstung: 82 Milliarden US-Dollar.
Kraftfahrzeuge; Teile und Zubehör, 62,3 Mrd. USD.
Thema 3: Die Bezirke mit den höchsten Emissionen sind die republikanischen Bezirke
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Von den 19 Bezirken, deren CO2-Ausstoß die Marke von 19 Millionen Tonnen überschritt, werden alle, bis auf zwei, von den Republikanern geführt.
Theme 4: Top Five Sectors Equal 76% of Emissions
Die Daten der US-Umweltschutzbehörde (EPA) zu direkten Treibhausgasemissionen umfassen 41 Branchen. Den Daten der US-Umweltschutzbehörde zufolge stammen 76 % der direkten Treibhausgasemissionen aus den fünf wichtigsten Sektoren:
Kraftwerke.
Erdöl und Erdgas.
Chemikalien.
Mineralien.
Abfallwirtschaft.
Theme 5: Republicans Voting Against Inflation Reduction Act had 72% Emissions in Their Disctricts
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The Republicans who voted against the Inflation Reduction Act led districts with 72% of total direct GhG emissions in the US in 2020. As highlighted above, regional GhG emissions differences are partly due to the complex nature of the U.S. economy as some areas are more industrial than others.
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Theme 6: Click on Emissions Profiles for Each Congressional District
Methodology
The 2009 U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) Greenhouse Gas Reporting Program (GHGRP) (part of 40 CFR Part 98) is a mandatory reporting program for GhG sources that in general emit 25,000 metric tons or more of CO2e annually in the U.S. Smaller sources and certain sectors such as the agricultural sector and land use changes are not included in the reporting mechanism.
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Reports are submitted annually and provide data collected during the previous calendar year (i.e., reporting year). Reports are due on March 31 for emissions in the previous calendar year.
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The annual reports are submitted to EPA electronically using an electronic greenhouse gas reporting tool (e-GGRT), which is accessed through the EPA web page noted below.
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EPA verifies the data submitted and does not require third-party verification. Prior to EPA verification, reporters are required to self-certify the data they submit to EPA.
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Data collected under the GHGRP must be available to the public unless the data qualify for confidential treatment under the Clean Air Act. EPA typically makes confidentiality determinations under the Clean Air Act on a case-by-case basis.
41 categories of industry are covered by the EPA reporting rule.
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Direct-emitting facilities report emissions from each source category (rule subpart) included in the GHGRP and these emissions can generally be categorized as either combustion or process emissions. Emissions from fuel combustion comprise carbon dioxide (CO2), methane (CH4), and nitrous oxide (N2O) emitted from combustion of a fossil fuel (e.g., coal, natural gas, petroleum products) or biomass feedstock (e.g., wood, landfill gas). Process emissions generally include emissions from chemical transformation of raw materials and fugitive emissions. The chemical transformation of raw materials often releases greenhouse gases such as CO2, CH4, and N2O. These processes include iron and steel production, cement production, petrochemical production, and nitric acid production, among others. Fugitive emissions refer to emissions of gases due to leaks or other unintended or irregular releases. Fugitive CH4 releases occur from petroleum and natural gas systems and underground coal mines. Fugitive emissions of fluorinated gases occur from industrial gas production, electrical equipment production and use, electronics manufacturing, aluminum production, and magnesium production. These processes typically release hydrofluorocarbons (HFCs), perfluorocarbons (PFCs), and sulfur hexafluoride (SF6).
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All data is sourced from the United States EPA GHGRP, ArcGIS Living Atlas of the World, and the Clerk of the United States House of Representatives. Data was accessed in August 2022. Data from the US EPA GHGRP is from 2020. Congressional district map is the 117th Congressional district map from Living Atlas. Data used is only aggregated publicly available information.
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The GHG emission values are calculated by grouping release coordinates into districts in ArcGIS.
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Data Sources:
https://clerk.house.gov/Votes/2021385
https://clerk.house.gov/Votes/2022420
https://www.epa.gov/ghgreporting/data-sets