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Green Facts for the United States and the World at Large
Consumption of energy and natural resources
- Americans consume 43 percent of the world's gasoline. (AJC Online,
2/5/2001. Column by Geneva Overholser.)
- According to the EPA, a reduction in consumption of 3450 kWh per year
is equivalent to one acre of trees planted (CO2); 7050 kWh per year
is equivalent to one car removed from the road (CO2).
- In the United States electricity is responsible for 35% of all emissions
of carbon dioxide, 75% of all sulfur dioxide, and 38% of all nitrogen
oxides. Each kilowatt-hour of electricity results in over two pounds
of carbon dioxide being released into the atmosphere. In 1970 23% of
all energy consumed in Georgia was for electricity; nationwide, 25%.
In 1995, 42% of all energy used in Georgia was used to generate electricity;
in the U.S. as a whole, 35%.
- In 1995 the U.S. used 941 million tons of coal, 21,581 billion cubic
feet of natural gas, and 6,469 million barrels of petroleum.
- Hourly consumption [by Americans] of over 100,000 tons of coal, 2.5
billion cubic feet of natural gas, and 738,000 barrels of petroleum
uses sufficient energy equivalent to flying around the world 2,500 times.
- Georgians used over twice the amount of energy in 1995 than they did
in 1970. In 1970 Georgia's energy usage consisted of 1.8% of the total
consumed in the U.S. By 1980 that percentage increased to 2.1% and in
1995 reached 2.8% of the total U.S. consumption. This placed Georgia
12th amongst all states in terms of energy usage.
- Yale University purchases approximately 80 million sheets of white
paper per year, or 84 pounds per student (of this, paper with recycled
content accounts for 1.8 percent).
- Campuses with student housing generate an average of 820 pounds of
waste per student per year.
- It takes the equivalent of 7 gallons of gasoline per day for every
man woman and child to keep this country running at its current pace.
- The U.S. is home to 5% of the world's population, yet consumes 26%
of the world's energy.
- If all the family vehicles in the United States were lined up bumper
to bumper, they would reach from the Earth to the moon – and back.
- The amount of fuel consumed in family vehicles in the United States
each year is enough to cover a regulation-size football field to a depth
of about 40 miles.
Pollution and Waste
- The U.S. releases one fourth of the 20 billion tons of carbon dioxide
emitted into the atmosphere each year.
- The average car emits 15,000 lb of carbon dioxide in a year; an acre
of trees consumes 7,333 lb of carbon dioxide a year.
- If one drives 65mph rather than 55mph, CO more than doubles per mile
driven.
Conservation
- In 2000 Brazil recycled about 80 percent of the 9.5 billion aluminum
cans sold in the country. In 1999 Japan's recycled of 79 percent of
its cans, the U.S. 63 percent and Europe 41 percent. Producing a ton
of aluminum from scratch requires 16,000 kilowatt-hours of electricity,
while using old cans requires only 750 kilowatt-hours.
- To date, the University of Buffalo and the City University of New
York have both reduced their energy bills by over $3.5 million per year
through conservation programs.
- An acre of trees can store 2.6 tons of carbon each year. This can
compensate for automobile fuel use equivalent to driving a car between
7,200 and 8,700 miles.
- An acre of trees can remove between 287 and 651 tons of sulfur dioxide,
nitrogen dioxide, carbon monoxide, ozone and partriculate matter per
year.
- An acre of trees will provide about 2.8 tons of oxygen per year. This
is enough for 14 people.
- Tree cover over pervious surfaces can reduce runoff as much as 40%
and reduce the costs of treating stormwater runoff by decreasing the
volume of water handled during periods of peak rain events.
- Energy use in a house with trees can be 20 to 25% lower per year than
that for the same house in an open area.
- Wide belts of (30 m) tall dense trees combined with soft ground surfaces
can reduce noise by 50%.
- In 1996 New York City's water department convinced taxpayers that
allocating $1.5 billion to preserve natural watersheds north of the
city would save the $6 billion it would cost to construct a new water
treatment system.
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