Sustainability Indicators

Carbon Footprint
“A carbon footprint is the total greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions caused directly and indirectly by an individual, organization, event or
product.”1 It is calculated by summing the emissions resulting from every stage of a product or service’s lifetime (material production,
manufacturing, use, and end-of-life). Throughout a product’s lifetime, or lifecycle, GHGs may be emitted, such as carbon dioxide (CO₂),
methane (CH₄), and nitrous oxide (N₂O), each with a greater or lesser ability to trap heat in the atmosphere. These differences are accounted
for by the global warming potential (GWP) of each gas, resulting in a carbon footprint in units of mass of carbon dioxide equivalents (CO₂e).
See the Center for Sustainable Systems “Greenhouse Gases Factsheet” for more information on GWP. A typical U.S. household has a carbon
footprint of 48 metric tons (t) CO₂e/yr.2

Sources of Emissions Greenhouse Gases Contribution by Food Type in

Food Average Diet3
• Food accounts for 10-30% of a household's carbon footprint, typically a higher portion
Beverages 5.9%
in lower-income households.2 Production accounts for 68% of food emissions, while
Dairy 18.3% Fish and
transportation accounts for 5%.4 Seafood
• Food production emissions consist mainly of CO₂, N₂O, and CH₄, which result 5.8%
Eggs
primarily from agricultural practices.5 2.8%
• Meat products have larger carbon footprints per calorie than grain or vegetable Meats Vegetables
56.6%
products because of the inefficient conversion of plant to animal energy and due to 2.6%
Grain products 2.1%
CH₄ released from manure management and enteric fermentation in ruminants.5
• Livestock emitted 195 million metric tons (Mt) CO2e of methane in 2021 from enteric Other Fruits 1.6%
4.3%
fermentation, 139 Mt (71%) of it from beef cattle.6
• In an average U.S. household, eliminating the transport of food for one year could save
the GHG equivalent of driving 1,000 miles, while shifting to a vegetarian meal one day
a week could save the equivalent of driving 1,160 miles.5
• A vegetarian diet greatly reduces an individual’s carbon footprint, but switching to
less carbon intensive meats can have a major impact as well. For example, beef's GHG
emissions per kilogram are 7.2 times greater than those of chicken.7 Pounds of CO2e per Serving13
(4 oz. meat, 1/2 c. asparagus & carrots, 8 oz. liquids)
Household Emissions
7
• For each kWh generated in the U.S., an average of 0.857 pounds of CO2e is released
6.61 Beef
at the power plant.8 Coal releases 2.2 pounds, petroleum releases 2.0 pounds, and 6
Cheese
natural gas releases 0.9 pounds. Nuclear, solar, wind, and hydroelectric release no Pork
Pounds CO2e per Serving

CO2 when they produce electricity, but emissions are released during upstream 5 Poultry
Eggs
production activities (e.g., solar cells, nuclear fuels, cement production).6,9 4
Milk
• Residential electricity use in 2021 emitted 578.3 Mt CO2e, 9.1% of the U.S. total.6 Rice
Legumes
• Space heating and cooling are estimated to account for 44% of energy in U.S. 3
Carrots
residential buildings in 2023.10 2.45
Potatoes
2
• Refrigerators are one of the largest users of household appliance energy; in 2021, an
1.72
average of 718 lbs CO2e per household was due to refrigeration.8,11 1 1.26
• 26 Mt CO₂e are released in the U.S. each year from washing clothes. Switching to a 0.89 0.72
0.16 0.11 0.07 0.03
cold water wash once per week can reduce household GHG emissions by over 70 lbs 0

annually.12
Personal Transportation Transportation Greenhouse Gases, 20216
• U.S. fuel economy (mpg) declined by 12% from 1988-2004, then improved by 32%
from 2004-2021, reaching an average of 25.4 mpg in 2021.14 Annual per capita miles driven
increased 9% since 1995 to 9,937 miles in 2019.15
• Cars and light trucks emitted 1.05 billion metric tons (Gt) CO2e or 16.5% of the total U.S.
GHG emissions in 2021.6
• Of the roughly 66,000 lbs CO₂e emitted over the lifetime of an internal combustion engine
car (assuming 93,000 miles driven), 84% come from the use phase.16
• Gasoline releases 19.4 pounds of CO2 per gallon when burned, compared to 22.5 pounds per
gallon for diesel.17 However, diesel has 11% more BTU per gallon, which improves its fuel
economy.18
• The average passenger car emits 0.77 pounds of CO₂ per mile driven.14
• Automobile fuel economy can improve 7-14% by simply observing the speed limit. Every 5
mph increase in vehicle speed over 50 mph is equivalent to paying an extra $0.25-$0.50 per gallon.19
For Complete Set of Factsheets visit css.umich.edu
• Commercial aircraft GHG emissions vary according to aircraft type, trip length, occupancy, and passenger and cargo weight, and totaled 120
Mt CO2e in 2021.6 In 2021, the average domestic commercial flight emitted 0.75 pounds of CO2e per passenger mile.6,20
• Domestic air travel fuel efficiency (passenger miles/gallon) had increased 115% from 1990-2019 largely due to increased occupancy. The
Covid-19 pandemic decreased this improvement to a 20% increase in fuel efficiency from 1990-2021.20 Emissions per domestic passenger-mile
decreased 44% from 1990-2019, but increased 47% from 2019-2021 due to Covid restrictions.6,20
• In 2021, rail transportation emitted 35.2 Mt CO2e, accounting for 2% of transportation emissions in the U.S.6

Solutions and Sustainable Actions

Ways to Reduce Carbon Footprint U.S. Greenhouse Gas Emissions, 202029
• Reduce meat in your diet and avoid wasting food.
• Walk, bike, carpool, use mass transit, or drive a
best-in-class vehicle.
• Ensure car tires are properly inflated. Fuel efficiency
decreases by 0.2% for each 1 PSI decrease.21
• Smaller houses use less energy. Average household
energy use is highest in single-family houses (80.85
million BTU), followed by mobile homes (61.3
million BTU), apartments with 2-4 units (53.5
million BTU), and apartments with 5+ units in the
building (33.7 million BTU).11
• Whether you hand wash dishes or use a dishwasher,
follow recommended practices to decrease water
and energy use and reduce emissions.22
• Energy consumed by devices in standby mode
accounts for 5-10% of residential energy use, adding
up to $100 per year for the average American
household. Unplug electronic devices when not in
use or plug them into a power strip and turn the
power strip off.23
• Choose energy-efficient lighting. Switching from
incandescent to LED light bulbs saves an average
household more than $200/year.24,25
• Reduce what you send to a landfill by recycling,
composting, and buying products with minimal
packaging.
• Purchase items with a comparatively low carbon
footprint. Some manufacturers have begun
assessing and publishing their products’ carbon
footprints.
• Covering 80% of roof area on commercial buildings
in the U.S. with solar reflective material would conserve energy and offset 125 Mt CO₂ over the structures’ lifetime, equivalent to turning off
34 coal power plants for one year.26,27
• Replacing the global fleet of shipping containers’ roof and wall panels with aluminum would save $28 billion in fuel.28
Carbon Footprint Calculator
Estimate your personal or household greenhouse gas emissions and explore the impact of different techniques to lower those emissions:
• U.S. Environmental Protection Agency: www3.epa.gov/carbon-footprint-calculator/
• The Nature Conservancy: www.nature.org/greenliving/carboncalculator/
• Global Footprint Network: https://www.footprintcalculator.org/

1. The Carbon Trust (2018) Carbon Footprinting. 15. U.S. Department of Energy (DOE), Oak Ridge National Lab (2022) Transportation Energy Data
2. Jones C., Kammen D. (2011) "Quantifying Carbon Footprint Reduction Opportunities for U.S. Book: Edition 40.
Households and Communities." 16. Pero, F. et al. (2018) Life Cycle Assessment in the automotive sector: a comparative case study of
3. Heller, M.C., et al. (2018). Greenhouse gas emissions and energy use associated with production of Internal Combustion Engine and electric car.
individual self-selected US diets. Environmental Research Letters, 13(4), 044004. 17. U.S. EIA (2022) “Carbon Dioxide Emissions Coefficients.”
4. Boehm R., et al. (2018) "A Comprehensive Life Cycle Assessment of Greenhouse Gas Emissions from 18. U.S. DOE, Alternative Fuels Data Center (2015) “Fuel Properties Comparison Chart.”
U.S. Household Food Choices." 19. U.S. DOE, Office of Energy Efficiency and Renewable Energy (EERE) (2023) “Driving More
5. Weber, C. and H. Matthews (2008) "Food miles and the Relative Climate Impacts of Food Choices in Efficiently."
the United States." Environmental Science & Technology, 42(10): 3508-3513. 20. U.S. Department of Transportation Bureau of Transportation Statistics (2022) National
6. U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) (2023) Inventory of U.S. Greenhouse Gas Emissions and Transportation Statistics 2022.
Sinks 1990 - 2021. 21. U.S. DOE, EERE (2016) "Gas Mileage Tips: Keeping Your Car In Shape."
7. Heller, M., et al. (2020). Implications of Future US Diet Scenarios on Greenhouse Gas Emissions. 22. Porras, G. (2019) Life Cycle Comparison of Manual and Machine Dishwashing in Households
8. U.S. EPA (2023) “Emissions & Generation Resource Integrated Database (eGRID) 2021.” 23. U.S. DOE (2012) “3 Easy Tips to Reduce Your Standby Power Loads.”
9. U.S. Energy Information Administration (EIA) (2023) Electric Power Monthly with Data from 24. Liu, L., Keoleian, G. A., & Saitou, K. (2017). Replacement policy of residential lighting optimized for
January 2023. cost, energy, and greenhouse gas emissions. Environmental Research Letters, 12(11), 114034.
10. U.S. EIA (2023) Annual Energy Outlook 2023. 25. Department of Energy (2023) Energy Saving Hub.
11. U.S. EIA (2023) Residential Energy Consumption Survey 2020. 26. Levinson, R. (2012) The Case for Cool Roofs. Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory, Heat Island
12. Mars C. (2016) Benefits of Using Cold Water for Everyday Laundry in the U.S. Group.
13. Heller, M. and G. Keoleian. (2014) Greenhouse gas emissions estimates of U.S. dietary choices and 27. U.S. EPA (2022) “Greenhouse Gas Equivalencies Calculator.”
food loss. Journal of Industrial Ecology, 19 (3): 391-401. 28. Buchanan, C., et al (2018) “Lightweighting shipping containers: Life cycle impacts on multimodal
14. U.S. EPA (2023) The 2022 EPA Automotive Trends Report: Greenhouse Gas Emissions, Fuel freight transportation.” Transportation Research Part D 62:418-432.
Economy, and Technology since 1975. 29. U.S. EPA (2020) 2020 Common Reporting Format (CRF) Table.

Cite as: Center for Sustainable Systems, University of Michigan. 2023. “Carbon Footprint Factsheet.” Pub. No. CSS09-05. August 2023