City of Detroit Greenhouse Gas Inventory: An Analysis of Citywide and Municipal Emissions for 2011 and 2012

Abstract

This GHG inventory quantifies Detroit’s citywide emissions from calendar years 2011 and 2012. The inventory accounts for the anthropogenic GHG emissions of carbon dioxide (CO2), methane (CH4), and nitrous oxide (N2O)4 and follows methods determined by U.S. EPA guidance and ICLEI Community and Municipal Protocols to model emissions from available activity data. These data were collected from a variety of sources, including DTE Energy, Southeast Michigan Council of Governments (SEMCOG), U.S. EPA, Federal Transit Administration’s National Transit Database, and various departments within the City of Detroit municipal government. The inventory is organized into the following activity categories: energy use from buildings and facilities, passenger cars, trucks, and on-road freight, public transportation, and municipal vehicle fleets; industrial processes; solid waste landfill disposal and incineration; and wastewater treatment. Carbon dioxide sequestered or removed from the atmosphere by land use, specifically by Detroit’s trees, is estimated but reported separately (i.e., these emissions are not included in citywide totals), as directed by current inventory protocols. Detroit’s total citywide emission calculations include emissions from the city’s municipal government operations, which are also reported and analyzed in a distinct municipal government inventory section of the report.