Environment at a Glance Indicators

United States

This country profile features selected environmental indicators from the OECD Core Set, building on harmonised datasets available on OECD Data Explorer. The indicators reflect major environmental issues, including climate, air quality, freshwater resources, waste and the circular economy, biodiversity, and selected policy responses to these issues. Differences with national data sources can occur due to delays in data treatment and publication, or due to different national definitions and measurement methods. The OECD is working with countries and other international organisations to further improve the indicators and the underlying data. The text of this country profile is complementary to the OECD Environmental Performance Review of the United States 2023.

Context

The United States (US) is the world’s largest economy based on nominal gross domestic product (GDP) and has one of the highest GDP per person in the world. The economic downturn caused by the COVID-19 pandemic hit the economy hard, with GDP contracting by 2.8% in 2020. In 2021, the economic recovery (+5.9%) has been more rapid than in most OECD countries due to unprecedented policy support combined with a rapid vaccination rollout. The US is a service-based economy, with strong wholesale and retail trade, information and communication, real estate, financial and insurance sectors.

With about 330 million of inhabitants, the US is among the most populous countries in the world. The population is ageing, but continues to grow, mainly driven by immigration. Population density is below the OECD average and varies considerably across the country, with densely populated cities, in particular along the coasts and more sparsely populated rural areas in the interior.

The United States is the third-largest country in the world. It has a diverse landscape that ranges from beaches to mountains, plains, forests and deserts. The range of climatic zones and ecosystems is correspondingly wide, including tropical and temperate forests, grasslands, deserts, wetlands, tundra, coral reefs, kelp forests, and sandy and rocky intertidal zones.

The country is endowed with abundant natural resources. It is one of the largest energy producers in the world. The shale revolution that began in 2005, led by technological breakthroughs in hydraulic fracturing and horizontal drilling, has reduced oil and gas production cost and resulted in an unprecedented increase in production. It made the country the world’s largest producer of oil and gas and has turned it to a net energy exporter.

The United States is also one of the largest global producers of the metals and minerals powering manufacturing – from precious metals such as gold and silver to copper, nickel, iron, lead, uranium, bauxite, mercury, tungsten and zinc. The nation is also the leading producer and consumer of phosphates, a key ingredient in fertilizers used in agricultural production.

The US Constitution establishes a federal system of government, which divides power between the federal government and the 50 states as well as the District of Columbia. Shared responsibilities in economic policy, energy development, transportation, land use planning, and natural resource use, provides states with a considerable degree of authority to set policy and regulation.

Basic statistics

Climate change

GHG emissions

The United States has decoupled CO₂ emissions from fossil fuel combustion and total energy use from economic growth. This is mainly due to a continued shift away from coal towards less carbon- intensive energy sources (such as natural gas and renewables in the electric power sector) as well as technological changes, such as improved energy efficiency. The pandemic outbreak and associated reduction in activity and consumption led to a further decline of emissions in 2020. The intensity of CO₂ emissions from fuel combustion per person as well as the CO₂ emissions footprint (demand-based) per person are above the OECD average. Demand-based CO₂ emissions per person, that accounts for carbon emitted in imports to satisfy domestic final demand, are also higher than production-based emissions per person.

Fossil fuel combustion accounts for the bulk of CO₂ emissions. Transport is the largest emitter of CO₂ followed by electric power generation and manufacturing industry. More than 90% of the energy use in transportation comes from petroleum. Emissions from transport have remained fairly stable since 2000. The combined effect of increased demand for travel that led to generally increasing CO₂ emissions, and improvements in average new vehicle fuel economy since 2005, have slowed the rate of increase of CO₂ emissions. Emissions from industry have in general declined over the past decades, due to structural changes in the economy (i.e. shifts from a manufacturing-based to a service-based economy), fuel switching, and energy efficiency improvements. Other sources of GHG emissions come from, in order of magnitude, the agriculture, commercial, and residential sectors, plus emissions from US Territories (e.g. Puerto Rico, the Virgin Islands, Guam, the Northern Mariana Islands and American Samoa).

Agricultural soil management activities, such as fertilizer application and other cropping practices, are the largest source of nitrous oxide (N₂O) emissions, while the main sources of CH4 include enteric fermentation from domestic livestock, natural gas systems, landfills, domestic livestock manure management, coal mining, and petroleum systems. Emissions from agriculture increased mainly due to increased cattle stocks. Emissions from waste decreased due to increased landfill gas collection and control systems, and a reduction of biodegradable materials (i.e., paper and paperboard, food scraps, and yard trimmings) discarded in municipal solid waste landfills. The Land Use Land Use Change and Forestry (LULUCF) sector acts as a net carbon sink.

Energy mix and share of renewables

Energy intensity per unit of GDP has been decreasing in recent decades, especially since the decline in the economy and energy consumption after the financial crisis in 2008-09, but remains one of the highest among OECD member countries.

Fossil fuels continue to dominate the energy mix and account for a larger share than in most other OECD countries. The shares of gas and renewables in the energy mix have increased since 2000, while the shares of oil and coal have declined. The United States is the world’s second-largest producer and consumer of energy. The shale revolution has turned it from a net energy importer to a net exporter in 2018. Moreover, the abundance of low-cost natural gas has resulted in gas-fired generation overtaking coal-fired generation in the power sector (IEA, 2019b).

Renewable energy is playing an increasingly important role, especially in power generation, but its share in the energy and electricity mix remains below the OECD average. Although wind and solar are growing rapidly, the major source of renewable energy is still bioenergy and waste, mainly from the usage of solid biofuels in electricity generation and in the pulp and paper sector, and the use of biogasoline (fuel ethanol). The United States is a world leading ethanol producer. Hydro is the second largest source of renewables.

Air quality

Air emissions

Emissions of most major air pollutants have decreased since 2000. The United States reached its 2020 Gothenburg Protocol objectives for sulphur dioxide (SO₂) and nitrogen oxides (NOx) and non-methane volatile organic compounds (NMVOC) emissions. PM_2.5 emissions have been declining, but are above the 2020 indicative target.

Transport, industrial processes and energy production are the major sources of NO₂. NMVOCs are emitted primarily from industrial processes and transportation. SO₂ is primarily emitted from coal combustion for electric power generation and the metals industry. PM_2.5 emissions are emitted primarily from agriculture, industrial processes, residential combustion, transport and waste.

Large reductions in pollutant emissions are due to implementation of regulations as part of the Clean Air Act in 1990. Emissions control technologies employed in on-road vehicles since the mid-1990s, helped reduce CO, NO_x and NMVOC emissions. SO₂ emissions have decreased in recent years, primarily as a result of electric power generators switching from high to low-sulphur coal and installing flue gas desulfurization equipment. Decreases in residential fuel combustion for SO₂ is a result of a decrease in fuel consumption. Except for carbon monoxide (CO), all pollutants intensities are below the OECD average. Mobile sources and agriculture are the major sources of CO emissions.

Although declining, the average exposure of the population to PM_2.5 concentrations in most states, remains above the guideline value of 5µg/m³ recommended by the World Health Organization (WHO). The Wyoming and Hawaii enjoy the best air quality, with average PM_2.5 concentration levels below the WHO guideline value. The average mean population exposure to PM_2.5 is among the lowest in the OECD.

Freshwater resources

Intensity of use of freshwater resources

The United States have abundant freshwater resources: the Mississippi, Missouri and Ohio river systems, drain about 40% of the continental land area. Latest data show that the US is under moderate water stress, with a decreasing trend. However, the national average masks important sub-national variations. In the Southwest (Arizona, California, Colorado, Nevada, New Mexico, and Utah), which is the country’s most arid region, water demand for irrigation exceeds available water resources.

Water abstractions in four States—California, Texas, Idaho, and Arkansas—accounted for more than one-quarter of all freshwater abstracted in in 2015. Abstractions for agricultural uses (mainly irrigation) accounted for 45% of total abstractions, followed by water used for the production of electricity (cooling).

The drop in total abstractions in 2015 was primarily caused by significant decreases in abstractions for the production of electricity. Abstractions for public supply have decline since 2005, partly due to restrictions on public-supply water use in response to severe droughts and to more water-efficient household appliances. However, per person total abstractions and abstractions for public supply remain high compared to other OECD countries. Information on recent trends and developments is not (yet) available, as surveys on freshwater abstraction are carried out every ten years.

The proportion of safely treated domestic wastewater flows was 89.9 % in 2018. Over 16% of households were not served by public sewers and depend on septic tanks to treat and dispose of wastewater.

Waste, materials and circular economy

Municipal waste

Generation of municipal solid waste (MSW) has risen in the past decade. The United States have the second highest per person generation intensity among OECD countries, partly reflecting the economy’s high level of consumption. In 2018 the US enhanced its food waste measurement methodology, which resulted in capturing more food waste than in previous years and thus a larger increase in MSW generation between 2017 and 2018.

The share of MSW landfilled decreased since 2000 but still represents 50% of amounts treated. At the same time, the share of recycling and composting increased to 23.6% and 8.5% respectively, slightly below the OECD average. About 12% of MWS are incinerated with energy recovery. In 2021, the US National Recycling Strategy set the goal to more than double the national recycling rate of municipal solid waste to 50% by 2030.

Material consumption

Consumption of materials decreased over 2000-2019 while GDP continue to increase, resulting in increased material productivity. Per person material consumption decreased until 2009 and has remained fairly stable since.

As in most OECD countries, domestic material consumption (DMC) is dominated by non-metallic minerals (dominated by construction materials), followed by biomass and fossil energy materials. The decrease of DMC over 2000-2009 is due to a drop in non-metallic minerals following the 2008 financial crisis, while consumption of biomass increased. Since then, DMC increased slightly increased.

Biodiversity

With a mainland bounded by the Atlantic Ocean to the east, the Pacific Ocean to the west, Canada to the north, and Mexico and the Gulf of Mexico to the south, the United States is a large and diverse country. Ecosystems range from the Arctic tundras of northern Alaska to the tropical forests of Hawaii and the overseas United States territories.

Forests are common in the eastern United States, mountainous regions of the western United States, and Alaska. Cropland is concentrated in the mid-continent region of the United States, and grassland is more common in the western United States and Alaska. Wetlands are fairly ubiquitous throughout the United States, though they are more common in the upper Midwest and eastern portions of the country, as well as coastal regions. Settlements are more concentrated along the coastal margins and in the eastern states.

The United States is a megadiverse country, hosting more than 60 000 species. There are over 1 670 species listed as either endangered or threatened under the Endangered Species Act (ESA). Since 2000 about 445 species were added to the list: additions peaked between 2010 and 2016 with an average of 47 species added each year, but significantly decreased since, to about 6 species per year between 2017 and 2019. Under the ESA, US Fish and Wildlife Service reviews the status of species at least once every year. Five-year reviews subsequently allow for updating conservation and recovery efforts at the individual species level.

Protected areas

13% of US lands and inland waters are protected with a primary intent for biodiversity management and an additional 17% is protected for multiple uses.19% of the exclusive economic zone (EEZ) is protected as Marine Protected Areas (the US classification includes the Great Lakes in marine waters, which increases the share of marine waters that are protected to 26%). Given the size of the country, the US has the second largest (after Australia) protected areas network among OECD countries, covering about one million km2 of land and 1.7 million km2 of waters. Although not a party to the Convention on Biological Diversity, the United States helped to develop and endorsed the 2010 Aichi targets.  In January of 2021, the United States committed to conserving at least 30% of American land and waters, including freshwater ecosystems and ocean area, by 2030.

Policy instruments

This section shows selected policy instruments based on data available for most OECD countries and does not provide a complete overview of countries’ policy mix to achieve their environment-related objectives. The focus below is on climate-related instruments. Interpretation should consider the country specific context.

The United States relies on a broad range of instruments to mitigate climate change and address broader environmental objectives. Examples for climate and air pollution include non-trade distorting subsidies for low emission technologies, the incorporation of climate change mitigation measures into public investments and regulatory instruments such as air pollution emission standards of coal fired-power plants, minimum energy performance standards for electric motors, electric appliances, passenger cars and heavy duty vehicles, energy efficiency mandates for large energy consumers, as well as energy efficiency labels for electric appliances and passenger cars. In 2022, the government passed the Inflation Reduction Act (IRA), that aims to reduce energy costs for households and create jobs while reducing GHG emissions, ensuring a future low-carbon energy supply, and increasing energy security. The IRA includes a set of subsidies for clean energy (clean electricity credits, individual green energy credits, wind and solar tax credits), clean manufacturing credits, the creation of a “green bank” and agricultural conservation. The IRA is expected to reduce US greenhouse gas emissions around 40% by 2030.

Environmentally-related taxation

The share of environmentally-related tax revenue in GDP decreased since 2010 and is well below the OECD average, partly due to the fact that US energy taxation levels are relatively low. Fuel taxes are relatively low, and taxes on diesel and petrol for motor vehicles are the lowest in the OECD. As in many countries, most receipts come from taxes on energy products and on transport. Taxes on pollution and resource management such as landfill taxes, water pollution taxes and biodiversity-related taxes do not raise much revenue.

Government support to fossil fuel and effective carbon rates

In 2021, explicit carbon prices in the United States consist of emissions trading systems (ETS) permit prices, which cover 6.4% of GHG emissions. In total, about 40% of emissions are priced, of which none above 120 EUR/tonne. This share is almost identical when excluding emissions from the combustion of biomass. Less than 3.9% of GHG emissions have a Net ECR above EUR 60 per tonne of CO2e, a mid-range estimate of current carbon costs. Net ECRs are highest in the road transport sector and is negative in the buildings sector.

The United States did not have an explicit Federal carbon tax. However, carbon trading systems have been enacted at sub-national levels. For instance, the Regional Greenhouse Gas Initiative includes 12 states in a cap-and-invest program for the power sector. California has a multi-sectoral cap-and-trade program that covers approximately 85% of the state’s emissions.

OECD estimates show that, the United States implicitly supports the production of fossil fuels through federal tax breaks for various types of tax expenditures in the oil and natural gas industry. For example, oil producers benefit from tax credits on investment costs related to the use of enhanced oil-recovery methods whenever the reference price of oil falls below a specified level. Another important source of support is the federal fossil-energy research and development programme, which provides funding for developing technologies related to fossil energy such as fuels conversion or coal liquefaction. However, large cuts were made in 2018 (-55% compared to 2017) in order to focus on early-stage research and development. The 2021 Executive Order on Tackling the Climate Crisis at Home and Abroad, set the objective to phase-out direct fossil fuel subsidies from the budget request, as of 2022.

In addition, State governments also provide support to the fossil fuel industry. For instance, Alaska implemented a tax credit per taxable barrel worth up to USD 8 in certain areas in order to encourage crude-oil production on the North Slope. Texas exempts certain uses of natural gas and electricity from the sales tax that normally applies. Recent trends in support coincide with rising fuel costs due to high inflation, increasing demand, and changes in supply in the global energy market. Most new measures in 2022 provided energy price support through tax cuts and suspensions.

Technology and innovation

The United States is a leader in clean energy innovation and deployment, albeit it’s leadership worldwide is declining. The number of patents on environmental technologies represent about 15% of inventions worldwide, down from 22% in 2000, and the share in total inventions at about 8% in 2021, is below OECD average.

The United States is by far the largest R&D-investing economy. As in many other countries most investments are made by the private sector, with public R&D on environmental technologies below 1% of total public R&D. The 2022 Inflation Reduction Act is doubling the Research and Development (R&D) Tax Credit for Small Businesses. It also creates a new Clean Energy and Sustainability Accelerator, which will seed state and local clean energy financing institutions, supporting the deployment of distributed zero-emission technologies like heat-pumps, community solar, and EV charging. This Accelerator will expand opportunities for clean energy entrepreneurship while prioritizing over 50% of its investments in disadvantaged communities.

Environment-related development assistance

As the world’s largest provider of official development assistance (ODA), the United States has substantial development programmes in all sectors and regions. Foreign assistance priorities include global health and security, tackling the climate crisis, promoting democracy and good governance while countering authoritarianism, and addressing discrimination and inequality. The United States’ total official development assistance (ODA) (USD 60.5 billion) increased in 2022, mainly due to support to Ukraine, as well as increased costs for in-donor refugees from Afghanistan. ODA represented 0.23% of gross national income (GNI). In 2020-21, the United States committed 7.8% of its total bilateral allocable aid in support of the environment and the Rio Conventions (DAC average of 34.3%), down from 8.2% in 2018-19. Four percent of screened bilateral allocable aid focused on environmental issues as a principal objective, compared with the DAC average of 11.3%. Three percent of total bilateral allocable aid focused on climate change overall (the DAC average was 29%), down from 3.5% in 2018-19. The United States had an equal focus on mitigation (1.9%) than on adaptation (1.9%) in 2020-21. Two percent of total bilateral allocable aid focused on biodiversity (compared with the DAC average of 6.5%), down from 2.6% in 2018-19.

References and further reading

Energy Information Administration, “Annual Energy Outlook”, https://www.eia.gov/outlooks/aeo/

EPA (2022), “Inventory of U.S. Greenhouse Gas Emissions and Sinks: 1990-2020”. US Environmental Protection Agency, EPA 430-R-22-003. https://www.epa.gov/ghgemissions/draft-inventory-us-greenhouse-gas-emissions-and-sinks-1990-2020

EPA, “Facts and Figures report”, https://www.epa.gov/facts-and-figures-about-materials-waste-and-recycling/advancing-sustainable-materials-management

EPA, “Land Use”, https://www.epa.gov/report-environment/land-use#effect.

EPA, “National Overview: Facts and Figures on Materials, Wastes and Recycling”, https://www.epa.gov/facts-and-figures-about-materials-waste-and-recycling/national-overview-facts-and-figures-materials

EPA, “Our nation's air: trends through 2020”, https://gispub.epa.gov/air/trendsreport/2021/#home

EPA Report on the Environment: https://www.epa.gov/report-environment

IEA (2019a), Energy Policies of IEA Countries: United States 2019 Review, IEA, Paris https://www.iea.org/reports/energy-policies-of-iea-countries-united-states-2019-review

IEA (2019b), “The US shale revolution has reshaped the energy landscape at home and abroad, according to latest IEA policy review”, Press release, https://www.iea.org/news/the-us-shale-revolution-has-reshaped-the-energy-landscape-at-home-and-abroad-according-to-latest-iea-policy-review

Nature Serve, Explorer, https://explorer.natureserve.org/Search

OECD (2023), OECD Environmental Performance Reviews: United States 2023, OECD Environmental Performance Reviews, OECD Publishing, Paris, https://doi.org/10.1787/47675117-en.

OECD (2023), OECD Inventory of Support Measures for Fossil Fuels: Country Notes, OECD Publishing, Paris, https://doi.org/10.1787/5a3efe65-en

OECD (2022), OECD Economic Outlook, Volume 2022 Issue 1: Preliminary version, OECD Publishing, Paris, https://doi.org/10.1787/62d0ca31-en.

OECD (2022), “Effective Carbon Rates: Key findings for the United States”, https://www.oecd.org/tax/tax-policy/carbon-pricing-united-states.pdf

OECD (2023), "United States", in Development Co-operation Profiles, OECD Publishing, Paris, https://doi.org/10.1787/2dcf1367-en.

OECD (2020), OECD Economic Surveys: United States 2020, OECD Publishing, Paris,

https://doi.org/10.1787/12323be9-en.

OECD (2016), Water risk hotspots for agriculture: the case of the southwest United States, COM/TAD/CA/ENV/EPOC(2016)5/FINAL.

The White House (2022), FACT SHEET: The Inflation Reduction Act Supports Workers and Families, https://www.whitehouse.gov/briefing-room/statements-releases/2022/08/19/fact-sheet-the-inflation-reduction-act-supports-workers-and-families/

UNFCCC, “NDC Registry: United States of America First NDC (After rejoining the Paris Agreement)”, https://unfccc.int/NDCREG

United States Bureau of Economic Analysis, https://www.bea.gov/data

United States Census: https://www.census.gov/data.html

United States Government open data repository: https://www.data.gov/

United States National Statistics for the UN Sustainable Development Goals, https://sdg.data.gov/

University of Michigan Center for sustainable systems, “U.S. Wastewater Treatment Factsheet”, https://css.umich.edu/us-wastewater-treatment-factsheet

UNSTAT, “SDG country profile: United States of America”, https://unstats.un.org/sdgs/dataportal/countryprofiles/USA

US Fish and Wildlife Service, “Listed Species Summary”, https://ecos.fws.gov/ecp/report/boxscore

USGS, “Estimated Use of Water in the United States in 2015”, https://pubs.usgs.gov/circ/1441/circ1441.pdf