Metro officials now know the per capita carbon emissions in Nashville. A green house gas inventory released last week shows the figure at 23.9 tons annually.
The city committed to lowering emissions by 2012, and the new data shows that goal will be difficult to reach.
The inventory includes all residents and businesses in Nashville plus Metro government. City operations accounted for roughly 5 percent of the total carbon emissions throughout Davidson County. Nearly 650,000 tons of CO2 came from Metro office buildings, fleet vehicles and employees on their way to and from work.
Last year, Mayor Karl Dean signed on with 900 other mayors to reduce carbon emissions created by municipal operations to 7 percent below 1990 levels. Jenna Smith is the mayor’s environmental manager. With the recent inventory, she says the city has learned for the first time what the 1990 figure was – 460,000 tons.
“We’re going to have to look at that. We’ll set some realistic goals, but we’ll also set some bold goals, is what I’m expecting.”
Smith says the city hasn’t given up entirely on the 2012 goal, but meeting it would take drastic action. The target requires reducing emissions 35 percent even while they’ve been steadily rising 1 to 2 percent each year.
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