Plummeting U.S. CO2 emissions

So why do we need Kyoto?

Plummeting U.S. CO2 emissions

Thanks a little bit to economic stagnation, but mostly to the boom in natural gas, the U.S. – the only large rich country not to sign the Kyoto Protocol – has seen its CO2 emissions tumble to levels not seen since the early 1990s. More drops are expected to follow. Global emissions (that's what really matters) continue to soar, but China is the main driver now. The U.S. is subtracting from total emissions growth now.

US CO2 emissions per capita in 2012 were the lowest since 1964


"As we observe Earth Day on April 22, we should celebrate the fact that we have “rolled back the carbon clock” by almost 50 years on a per capita basis in the US, and CO2 emissions per capita are expected to fall within the next 20 years to the lowest level in almost a century. Moreover, we should celebrate the fact that the US now leads the world in reducing CO2 emissions. And it’s important to recognize that the significant reduction in CO2 emissions over the last five years in the US was not the result of any intentional or planned energy policy, and it didn’t happen because of EPA restrictions on C02 emissions, or because of carbon taxes to reduce greenhouse gas emissions. Rather, it was the totally unexpected and unplanned outcome of the shale revolution, which resulted from advances in drilling technologies developed in the private sector that allowed “petropreneurs” to access previously inaccessible oceans of shale gas trapped in shale rock miles below the Earth’s surface."

 

If the US isn't the "problem" then us taxpayers should not be taxed for it.
But then that's just common sense talking.

 

The most absurd part is that under Kyoto, China is considered to be a 'developing nation' and would be exempt from CO2 emissions caps. Furthermore China would actually receive payments from western nations who are the 'polluters'. Our CO2 tax dollars would go directly to China who is the largest CO2 'polluter' under Kyoto.

 

Aren't politicians great?

 

But is China the largest per capita CO2 polluter?

 

No, oil service companies and their employees like yourself are the worst.

 

China is the leader in overall CO2 emissions, their annual emissions are 7,031,916 (thousands of tonnes) which accounts for 23.5% of the world's CO2 emissions. (2008 figure). The CO2 emissions in China are rising rapidly while the U.S. is decreasing. Whether China is measured from a total or per capita basis they are near the top.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_countries_by_carbon_dioxide_emissions

 

Edit: here's the data for the world:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_countries_by_carbon_dioxide_emissions_per_capita


(Ahh yes, I recall now: coal.)

 

Where did these projections come from?