Industrial Emissions Reduction Focus of New Pa. Program

The industrial sector is a significant energy user and also a large source of greenhouse gas emissions that trap heat in the atmosphere. That’s why it has been the focus of climate efforts to reduce emissions and decarbonize processes that require large amounts of energy.

Manufacturing and industrial processes accounted for about 35% of U.S. energy use in 2022, the vast majority of that energy coming from fossil fuels such as coal, natural gas, and petroleum, all of which emit carbon dioxide when burned. The industrial sector also accounts for about 12% of all CO2 emissions in the U.S.

The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency recently awarded Pennsylvania almost $400 million through its Climate Pollution Reduction Grants program created by the federal Inflation Reduction Act to allow the state to help companies lower their GHG emissions in a variety of ways.

The Reducing Industrial Sector Emissions Program in Pennsylvania (RISE PA) project will allow companies to apply for competitive grants to reduce industrial pollution in a number of ways, such as replacing diesel-powered equipment with electric equipment, capturing coal mine methane, installing energy-efficient heat recovery systems, and possibly carbon capture and sequestration. The grants will seek 20% GHG emissions reductions and require additional private investment.

Pennsylvania received 10% of the total federal funding available for the program, making it one of the largest grant winners in the country. Pennsylvania’s industrial sector accounts for slightly more than 30% of the state’s total greenhouse gas emissions, according to the 2023 Pennsylvania Greenhouse Gas Inventory Report, the highest of any sector. Among the state’s biggest industrial emitters are steel, plastic, and cement production.

The state predicts the RISE PA program will reduce 5.2 million tons of carbon by 2050, 10% of annual industrial emissions. Other states and coalitions receiving grants will use their share of the $4.3 billion in federal funding to address emissions in the transportation, electric generation, agricultural, and building sectors, according to the EPA announcement.