City of Austin 2010-2011 Climate Action Report

Page 20

measuring up Comparing our community’s carbon footprint

On average, each Travis Count y resident was r e s p on s i ble for ap p r ox imately 15 met r ic tons of CO2 emissions from energy use (electricity, natural gas, and transportation fuel) in 2010. Comparatively, the average U.S. resident is responsible for roughly 19 metric tons of energy-related CO2 emissions per year, and the aver-

age Texas resident emits approximately 25 metric tons of energy-related CO2 per year. Travis County residents’ per capita carbon footprints are roughly 21 percent smaller than that of their U.S. counterparts and 40 percent smaller than the average Texan’s carbon footprint. Why are we nearly half the Texas average? In part, it’s because Texas oil and gas refineries and other heavy industries, operate outside Central Texas.

travis county greenhouse gas inventory est. 14.9 Million MTCO2e

<1% Wastewater Treatment 11% Waste 36% Transportation 53% Energy

greenhouse gas emissions per capita Metric Tons CO2e per Capita Average Texan

25 Average U.S. Resident

19 Average Travis County Resident

16 | Community Climate Action

15 Climate Action Report


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