Iron and Steel
SmartSectors

The Utilities and Power Generation sector produces electricity and manages the transmission and distribution of electric power to customers.

Use the checkboxes below to select an environmental performance and an economic indicator.

Environmental Performance Indicators





Economic Indicators




What is in this chart?

This chart shows total air emissions, as reported annually to EPA’s Toxics Release Inventory (TRI) between 1998 and 2022, by establishments classified into NAICS 2211 (electric power generation, transmission, and distribution). Total air emissions decreased from 791 million pounds in 1998 to 63.98 million pounds in 2022.

What are TRI air emissions?

Total air emissions reported to TRI include fugitive air emissions and stack air emissions. Fugitive air emissions are all releases to air that do not occur through a confined air stream; such emissions may include equipment leaks, releases from building ventilation systems, and evaporative losses from surface impoundments and spills. Stack air emissions are releases to air that occur through a confined air stream, such as stacks, ducts, or pipes.

The quantity of releases does not indicate the level of health risk posed by the emissions. TRI data can vary from year to year at the facility and sector levels for a variety of reasons. For questions about specific values, contact TRI. In addition to TRI reporting, utilities are subject to statutory and regulatory requirements, including permitting.

Select an Economic Indicator Click to View Totals

What is in this chart?

This chart shows total air emissions, as reported annually to EPA’s Toxics Release Inventory (TRI) between 1998 and 2022, by establishments classified into NAICS 2211 (electric power generation, transmission, and distribution). Total air emissions decreased from 791 million pounds in 1998 to 64 million pounds in 2022.

What are TRI air emissions?

Total air emissions reported to TRI include fugitive air emissions and stack air emissions. Fugitive air emissions are all releases to air that do not occur through a confined air stream; such emissions may include equipment leaks, releases from building ventilation systems, and evaporative losses from surface impoundments and spills. Stack air emissions are releases to air that occur through a confined air stream, such as stacks, ducts, or pipes.

The quantity of releases does not indicate the level of health risk posed by the emissions. TRI data can vary from year to year at the facility and sector levels for a variety of reasons. For questions about specific values, contact TRI. In addition to TRI reporting, utilities are subject to statutory and regulatory requirements, including permitting.

The Utilities and Power Generation sector is comprised of establishments primarily engaged in electricity production, transmission and distribution to customers (NAICS 2211).

The electric power generation sub-sector (NAICS 22111) includes:

The electric power transmission and distribution sub-sectors include:

  • Electric bulk power transmission and control (NAICS 221121)
  • Electric power distribution (NAICS 221122)

Data presented in the Snapshot cover the entire electric utility sector (NAICS 22111). The number of facilities reporting data for the most recent year represented in the Snapshot charts for each environmental indicator are shown below:

Indicator EPA Program Facilities Reporting
Air Emission Toxic Release Inventory 404
Criteria air pollutants National Emission Inventory 1485
Greenhouse gases Inventory of Greenhouse Gas Emissions & Sinks Not available
Hazardous waste National Biannual Report 282
Production-related waste managed Toxic Release Inventory 409
Recycling of waste chemicals Toxic Release Inventory 2
Releases to land Toxic Release Inventory 190
Water discharges Toxic Release Inventory 191

NOTE: Variation in facilities counts between indicators reflects differences in reporting requirements. For more information, click on the program links in the chart description.

The Smart Sectors Utility and Power Generation Sector Information page has more details on the industry and related EPA programs.

Air Emissions

How to Download Your Data
  1. Go to https://www.epa.gov/enviro/tri-ez-search.
  2. Scroll down and click on “Flat (Denormalized) Form R – A flat view of the TRI database that contains a majority of the available TRI information.
  3. Select the following variables from the list of data elements provided.
    1. Reporting Year
    2. In the row immediately below Air Total Release check the box above SUM
    3. Primary NAICS Code
  4. Scroll to the bottom of the page and click on “STEP 3: Enter Search Criteria”
  5. On the next page:
    1. For Reporting Year – switch Operator Definition to “Between.” In the Search Value field, enter the first year shown in the Sector Snapshots chart, followed by “AND”, and the last year shown in the Sector Snapshots chart. For example, if the first year is 1996 and the last year is 2022, enter “1996 AND 2022” in the Search Value field. In the Sort Column field, enter “1.” (You can leave the other columns blank or unchanged.)
    2. For Primary NAICS Code – switch Operator to “Beginning with,” and enter 2211 (Electric Power Generation, Transmission and Distribution) under Search Value. Then check the last box to the right under “Where Only.”
    3. Click on “Search database” or “Output to CSV File”
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Criteria Air Pollutants

How to Download Your Data

Note: The data are available in a tab or comma-delimited text format that must be imported into a program that will allow you to analyze the file (such as Excel).

  1. Go to: Get Air Emissions Data | US EPA which has a table with yearly data tables. Download the data years desired.
  2. In the “Table of Air Emissions Data by Year and Time”, select the relevant NEI file under the Triennial NEI column for years within the range of the Snapshot Sectors Graphic.
  3. For 1996 – 2005, select the file with “naics” or “sics” in the file name. For example, for 2000, use the “2000sicsummarymade09” file, but for 2005, use the “naics_summary.zip” file.
  4. For 2008 and onwards, click the “Dara Summaries” hyperlink, then download the “Facility-level by Pollutant” File.
  5. Utilities facilities are grouped under SIC codes 4911, 4931, and 4949 for the years 1996 and 1999 and NAICS codes beginning with 2211 for the years 2002 – 2017.
  6. Using the SIC and NAICS variables, filter for utilities facilities, then sum total emissions of CO, NOX, VOC, PM10, NH3, and SO2 in each year to arrive at the totals shown in this chart.
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Greenhouse Gases

How to Download Your Data
  1. Go to Greenhouse Gas (GHG) Emissions and Removals | US EPA.
  2. Under “National” select the “EPA's Inventory of U.S. Greenhouse Gas Emissions and Sinks”, then select “Annual Report”
  3. In the table presented, navigate to the “Related Data Files” column.
  4. Open folder for Chapter 2 - Trends
  5. In table 2-11 (Electric Power-Related Greenhouse Gas Emissions), the 1996 – 2018 values in the “total” row corresponds to the values shown in this chart.
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Hazardous Waste Generation

How to Download Your Data
  1. Go to https://rcrapublic.epa.gov/rcra-hwip/trends-and-analysis/details/7
  2. Repeat the following steps for each reporting cycle. You will be able to access data for one year at a time but multiple NAICS codes. For each reporting cycle, to recreate the values shown in this chart:
    1. Select a data year in the “Report Cycle” box and click on the blue “Update filter” box.
    2. Click on the “…” menu option in the upper right hand corner of the Generator List Box.
    3. Click on “Download results,” chose the file format you want and save the file on your computer.
    4. Open the file and create a filter the records in the “naics_code” column.
    5. Sort or filter the “naics_code” column for the following NAICS codes:
      • 22111 ELECTRIC POWER GENERATION
      • 221111 HYDROELECTRIC POWER GENERATION
      • 221112 FOSSIL FUEL ELECTRIC POWER GENERATION
      • 221113 NUCLEAR ELECTRIC POWER GENERATION
      • 221114 SOLAR ELECTRIC POWER GENERATION
      • 221116 GEOTHERMAL ELECTRIC POWER GENERATION
      • 221117 BIOMASS ELECTRIC POWER GENERATION
      • 221118 OTHER ELECTRIC POWER GENERATION
      • 22112 ELECTRIC POWER TRANSMISSION, CONTROL, AND DISTRIBUTION
      • 221121 ELECTRIC BULK POWER TRANSMISSION AND CONTROL
      • 221122 ELECTRIC POWER DISTRIBUTION
  3. Reporting cycles: Select each year individually that is presented on the Sector Snapshots graphic.
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Production-Related Waste Managed

How to Download Your Data
  1. Go to https://www.epa.gov/enviro/tri-ez-search.
  2. Scroll down and click on “Flat (Denormalized) Form R – A flat view of the TRI database that contains a majority of the available TRI information.
  3. Select the following variables from the list of data elements provided.
    1. Reporting Year
    2. In the row immediately below Total Production Related Waste check the box above SUM
    3. Primary NAICS Code
  4. Scroll to the bottom of the page and click on “STEP 3: Enter Search Criteria”
  5. On the next page:
    1. For Reporting Year – switch Operator Definition to “Between.” In the Search Value field, enter the first year shown in the Sector Snapshots chart, followed by “AND”, and the last year shown in the Sector Snapshots chart. For example, if the first year is 1996 and the last year is 2022, enter “1996 AND 2022” in the Search Value field.
    2. For Primary NAICS Code – switch Operator to “Beginning with,” and enter 2211 (Electric Power Generation, Transmission and Distribution) under Search Value. Then check the last box to the right under “Where Only.”
    3. Click on “Search database” or “Output to CSV File”
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Releases to Land

How to Download Your Data
  1. Go to https://www.epa.gov/enviro/tri-ez-search.
  2. Scroll down and click on “Flat (Denormalized) Form R – A flat view of the TRI database that contains a majority of the available TRI information.
  3. Select the following variables from the list of data elements provided.
    1. Reporting Year
    2. In the row immediately below Land Total Release check the box above SUM
    3. Primary NAICS Code
  4. Scroll to the bottom of the page and click on “STEP 3: Enter Search Criteria”
  5. On the next page:
    1. For Reporting Year – switch Operator Definition to “Between.” In the Search Value field, enter the first year shown in the Sector Snapshots chart, followed by “AND”, and the last year shown in the Sector Snapshots chart. For example, if the first year is 1996 and the last year is 2022, enter “1996 AND 2022” in the Search Value field.
    2. For Primary NAICS Code – switch Operator to “Beginning with,” and enter 2211 (Electric Power Generation, Transmission and Distribution) under Search Value. Then check the last box to the right under “Where Only.”
    3. Click on “Search database” or “Output to CSV File”
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Water Discharges

How to Download Your Data
  1. Go to https://www.epa.gov/enviro/tri-ez-search.
  2. Scroll down and click on “Flat (Denormalized) Form R – A flat view of the TRI database that contains a majority of the available TRI information.
  3. Select the following variables from the list of data elements provided.
    1. Reporting Year
    2. In the row immediately below Water Total Release check the box above SUM
    3. Primary NAICS Code
  4. Scroll to the bottom of the page and click on “STEP 3: Enter Search Criteria”
  5. On the next page:
    1. For Reporting Year – switch Operator Definition to “Between.” In the Search Value field, enter the first year shown in the Sector Snapshots chart, followed by “AND”, and the last year shown in the Sector Snapshots chart. For example, if the first year is 1996 and the last year is 2022, enter “1996 AND 2022” in the Search Value field.
    2. For Primary NAICS Code – switch Operator to “Beginning with,” and enter 2211 (Electric Power Generation, Transmission and Distribution) under Search Value. Then check the last box to the right under “Where Only.”
    3. Click on “Search database” or “Output to CSV File”
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Dollar Value of Gross Output

How to Download Your Data
  1. Go to GDP by Industry | U.S. Bureau of Economic Analysis (BEA)
  2. Click on Underlying Detail Tables, Annual, 1997-2022
  3. Select “Gross Output by Industry.”
  4. Select “U.Gross Output by Industry (A).”
  5. Select “Underlying Summary Level’ and click “Next Step.” The resulting data table will then load.
  6. Select “Modify” in the upper-right-hand corner of the table. In the resulting window:
    1. Set the scale as “Billions”
    2. Set the start year as “1997-A”
    3. Set the end year as the last year presented in the graphic.
    4. In the code list, select “(2211) Electric power generation, transmission and distribution.” Do not select any other item in this menu, doing so may double count.
    5. Click “Refresh Table”
  7. Row 1 of the resulting table, labeled “Electric power generation, transmission, and distribution” provides the corresponding data shown in this chart for each year.
  8. (Optional) Download the dataset in XLS, CSV, or PDF format.
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Employment

How to Download Your Data

Note: The data are available in a comma-delimited text format that must be imported into a software package that will allow you to analyze the file.

  1. Go to https://www.census.gov/programs-surveys/cbp/data/datasets.html
  2. Click on any link labeled “County Business Patterns: YEAR.” On the resulting page, click the “Complete U.S. File” link and download the corresponding file. Repeat this process for each year corresponding to years presented in the graphic.
  3. Open each file in a software package of your choice that can process comma-delimited text files. Repeat the steps below for each file.
  4. For entities with suppressed data, the Census Bureau replaces all employment values with zeroes and this underestimates the total number of employees in each sector. Using your software package, replace the suppression flags with the midpoint of the Data Suppression Flag employment ranges per the table below.
    Empflag Data Suppression Flag Employment Size Class Midpoint
    Min Max
    A 0 19 10
    B 20 99 60
    C 100 249 175
    E 250 499 375
    F 500 999 750
    G 1000 2,499 1,750
    H 2,500 4,999 3,750
    I 5000 9,999 7,500
    J 10,000 24,999 17,500
    K 25,000 49,999 37,500
    L 50,000 99,999 75,000
    M 100,000 >100,000 100,000
  5. In your software package, filter the data for NAICS codes that begin with 2211.
  6. With the filter in place, aggregate the “emp” column across all records.
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Electricity Generation

How to Download Your Data
  1. For the most recent 10 years, go to https://www.eia.gov/electricity/monthly/epm_table_grapher.php?t=epmt_1_1
  2. Use the “Total Generation at Utility Scale Facilities” value for each corresponding year.
  3. For historical data, starting in 1996, look at previously issued PDFs found here: Electric Power Annual - U.S. Energy Information Administration (EIA)
  4. Select “Previous Issues.”
  5. Select each PDF, starting with 2006, to obtain historical data beginning in 1996. Refer to table ES1 “Summary Statistics for the United States”. Refer to the “Net Generation” value for “All Energy Sectors”.
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Constant Dollar Output Value (2017)

How to Download Your Data
  1. The constant dollar output metric uses inflation-adjusted economic output values. This contrasts with the dollar value of gross output (nominal output), which does not account for inflation.
  2. The GDP Implicit Price Deflator (IPD) is used to adjust the dollar value of gross output for inflation.
  3. The IPD is calculated by dividing nominal economic output (i.e., GDP) by constant dollar economic output and reflects the impact of prices on the measure of economic output. It is similar to the widely reported Consumer Price Index, but the IPD is more commonly used to reflect price increases facing businesses as well as consumers. The IPD is specified in the RCRA regulations.
  4. The IPD is indexed to a base year. When this chart was created, the IPD used 2017 as the base year (2017 IDP = 100). For each annual economic output data element in the Sector Snapshot data, nominal output values are converted to constant dollar output values using this formula: Constant Dollar Output Value = Nominal Output Value (as currently displayed in Sector Snapshots) / [(IPD for current year) / (IPD for base year)]
  5. IPD data is sourced from the Federal Reserve Bank of St. Louis (FRED) at https://fred.stlouisfed.org/series/GDPDEF#.
  6. The constant dollar output values are also used to calculate intensity ratios for each environmental performance indicator.
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