U.S. is emitting less of some greenhouse gases

EPA has released a report showing that the U.S. is making some progress in reducing its emissions of greenhouse gases. The report shows that for the years 1990 to 2004, methane emissions decreased 10% and nitrous oxide releases were down 2%. Carbon dioxide emissions in 2004 increased 1.7% from 2003, however. Fossil fuel combustion is responsible for 80% of U.S. greenhouse gas emissions. "The U.S. is making significant progress toward the President's greenhouse gas reduction goals," said EPA Administrator Stephen L. Johnson on the release of the report. That goal is to cut U.S. greenhouse gas intensity-that is, the ratio of greenhouse gas emissions to economic output-by 18% by 2012. The EPA report is the latest in an annual set of reports that the U.S. submits to the secretariat of the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change, which sets an overall framework for intergovernmental efforts to tackle the challenge posed by global climate change. The report, "Inventory of U.S. Greenhouse Gas Emissions and Sinks: 1990-2004" is available on the Internet at http://epa.gov/globalwarming/publications/emissions.