The North Carolina Department of Environmental Quality (DEQ) has released the 2022 update to the state Greenhouse Gas Inventory. The inventory contains detailed estimates of greenhouse gases (GHG) in key source categories from 1990 to 2018 and projections of North Carolina’s greenhouse gas emissions through 2030.
“The updated inventory shows that North Carolina is making progress and our efforts to cut greenhouse emissions are paying off,” said DEQ Secretary Elizabeth S. Biser. “It also highlights the need for continued focus on the transportation sector to meet our climate goals.”
Key Takeaways:
- Between 2005 and 2018, North Carolina reduced gross GHG emissions by 16% and net GHG emissions by 23%, while North Carolina’s population and real Gross State Product grew by 19% and 24%, respectively.
- By 2030, net GHG emissions are forecast to decrease by 39% relative to 2005 baseline emissions, with the inclusion of the electricity sector reductions mandated by House Bill 951.
- The inventory’s emission projections do not include all reductions expected as a result of policies enacted after 2020.
- The Transportation sector accounts for 36% of the state’s gross GHG emissions and is projected to decrease emissions at a much lower rate compared to the projected decrease in electricity generation emissions by 2030.
- Forests, natural lands, and agricultural lands sequestered an estimated 26% of the state’s gross GHG emissions in 2018.
The update to the North Carolina Greenhouse Gas Inventory focuses on four primary source categories: Electricity Use; Transportation; Residential, Commercial, and Industrial Fuel Combustion; and Land Use, Land Use Change, and Forestry (LULUCF) with significant changes in estimates for Transportation and LULUCF. Revisions were made to the transportation sector analysis due to newly available data and the use of an updated EPA-approved transportation model.
The inventory can be used by policy makers and environmental planners in our State to understand past, current, and expected future GHG emissions in North Carolina. It can also be used as a baseline to evaluate and develop GHG mitigation options for our state and predict their effect on reducing emissions in future years.
The state GHG inventory is available online at https://deq.nc.gov/GHGinventory.