EPA seeks comment on greenhouse gas report

Feb. 21 -- The Environmental Protection Agency is seeking public comment on a draft report that analyzes sources of greenhouse gas emissions.

The Inventory of U.S. Greenhouse Gas Emissions and Sinks: 1990-2005 will be open for public comment for 30 days after the Federal Register notice is published.

The major finding in the draft report is that overall emissions during 2005 increased by less than 1 percent from the previous year. Total emissions of the six main greenhouse gases in 2005 were equivalent to 7,262 million metric tons of carbon dioxide. These gases include carbon dioxide, methane, nitrous oxide, hydrofluorocarbons, perfluorocarbons, and sulfur hexafluoride. The draft report indicates that overall emissions have grown by 16 percent from 1990 to 2005, while the U.S. economy has grown by 55 percent over the same period.

The EPA prepared the annual report in collaboration with experts from multiple federal agencies.

The EPA, after responding to public comments, will submit the report to the U.S. State Department, which will forward the final inventory report to the Secretariat of the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change. Filing the report fulfills the United States´ annual requirement as a party to an international treaty on climate change.

The draft report is available online, along with instructions for submitting comments, at http://epa.gov/climatechange/emissions/usinventoryreport07.html.