D.C. Area Sees Spike In Rate of Emissions

Then, using methods from the U.S. Energy Information Administration, those figures were used to calculate the total amount of carbon dioxide emitted from vehicles and power-plant smokestacks. [See the chart for details.]

The figures from those calculations leave out greenhouse gases from other sources, such as agriculture, planes, boats and oil furnaces. Those missing figures could account for half of all emissions.

Still, the figures provide a glimpse of the Washington area's contributions to a global problem. They show that, even as climate change was becoming an urgent issue, residents were producing steadily more of the pollutants that cause it.

Jonathan Cogan, a spokesman for the Energy Information Administration, reviewed The Post's calculations and said the agency's formulas appeared to have been used correctly. "This doesn't represent everything, but it does represent two major sources of emissions," he said.

Carbon dioxide pollution is different from smog, which is composed of gases that cause problems closer to the Earth's surface. By contrast, carbon dioxide winds up in the upper atmosphere. The Washington area does not meet the Environmental Protection Agency's smog standards; the EPA does not have regulations on carbon dioxide.

Across the area, carbon dioxide emissions increased faster than the population, which grew about 5.5 percent from 2001 to 2005. Environmental groups said that this is an indication that the problem is not only growth but the way in which the region has grown.

"People have moved farther and farther out and drive more and more miles," said Frank O'Donnell, president of the District-based Clean Air Watch. "What it's telling you is, sprawl is causing a big increase in greenhouse gases."

In the past few months, several jurisdictions have pledged improvements.

Maryland has joined the Regional Greenhouse Gas Initiative, a pact among Eastern states to reduce emissions from power plants. Last week, Gov. Martin O'Malley (D) signed a "clean cars" bill to impose tougher standards on autos.

Last year, the District became the first major city in the country to mandate that some large new developments have "green" buildings designed to conserve energy. Montgomery County has a similar rule.

And in Virginia this year, Arlington and Fairfax counties have announced plans to reduce emissions. Fairfax's program, called a "cool counties" initiative, includes a proposal to buy 10 percent of the electricity for county government from wind farms, which produce no greenhouse gases.

Some residents are taking advantage of green-friendly policies. State Department employee Ed Fendley, for instance, commutes from his home near Ballston by bicycle. His zero-emissions trip is made possible by Arlington's bicycle lanes and the showers and bike rack provided by his employer -- and his willingness to endure rain, snow and bad drivers.