A Greenhouse Gas Emissions Inventory commissioned by the city of Elgin shows the largest discharges in the city come from industrial and commercial businesses.
Commercial/industrial energy creates about 38% of the climate-damaging emissions; 28% is attributed to residential users, inventory data shows.
City officials hope the information will help them in development of a plan through which they hope to reduce the gas releases by 50% by 2050.
The inventory, which started last year, involved more than 20 partners sharing data about their transportation practices, energy use and waste disposal activities with the International Council for Local Environment Initiatives, sustainability analyst Kristin Youngmeyer said.
“Identifying sources of greenhouse emissions was the first step to help us develop a plan on how to address this area,” Youngmeyer said.
“By having this inventory, we can monitor progress and evaluate our efforts. In addition, this work can ultimately enhance Elgin’s quality of life, contributing to Elgin being a vibrant place to live, work, play and visit.”
The results confirmed what analysts expected, she said. Most of the community-wide emissions come from a combination of commercial, transportation and residential energy use. A smaller percentage can be attributed to systems that process solid waste, distribute natural gas, and handle water and wastewater, Youngmeyer said.
Using the data, “we can now focus on next steps, which include setting emission reduction goals, forming a climate action plan and monitoring progress by repeating the inventory every two to five years,” she said.
The inventory looked separately at the city as a whole and local government operations, senior program officer Calyn Hart said during a recent presentation on the data.
Items that fall under the community-wide activities include building energy use, including electricity and gas; mobile fuel use; land use; solid waste decomposition; and wastewater treatment, Hart said.
Total greenhouse gas emissions for the entire community were 1.2 million metric tons of carbon dioxide equivalent, she said.
Metric tons carbon dioxide equivalent is the measurement used to determine the amount of greenhouse gases being released, according to climate.nasa.gov. One metric ton of carbon dioxide can fill a sphere 32 feet in diameter and an average car produces this amount over a three-month period, according to the website.
The inventory also broke down emissions from local government operations — buildings and facilities, fuel use by commuting employees, streetlights, traffic lights and wastewater sources, Hart said.
Data showed government emissions were 40,000 metric tons of carbon monoxide equivalent. The figure is part of the community-wide total, she said.
Gloria Casas is a freelance reporter for The Courier-News.
