By the Numbers: D.C.'s Spike in CO2 Levels

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File photo of I-95 in Springfield by Rich Lipski/The Washington Post

THE D.C. METROPOLITAN AREA "is in the middle of a carbon dioxide binge," The Post's David A. Fahrenthold reports. Using traffic and utility statistics, The Post tracked emissions generated from cars and electricity consumption from 2001 to 2005 in what appears to be the first analysis of its kind. Let's take a look at some of the numbers ...

» While national greenhouse gas emissions increased by 5.6 percent, the D.C. area's emissions hike was 13.4 percent during the four-year timeframe.
» Emissions jumped the most in D.C.'s Virginia suburbs, where there was an 18 percent increase.
» In suburban Maryland, the jump was less substantial: 11 percent.
» The District's increase was only 6.7 percent, which is, as The Post writes, "partly a sign of changing behavior: Residents were leaving their cars at home and walking, biking or taking public transit."
» Nationally, carbon dioxide makes up 84 percent of all greenhouse gas emissions.
» Also, 58 percent of carbon dioxide in the United States comes from vehicle tailpipe emissions and power plants.

» "D.C. Area Sees Spike In Rate of Emissions" [WaPo]