Earth Day by the Numbers
April 22, 2019, marks the 49th anniversary of Earth Day—a day intended to inspire awareness and appreciation for the Earth's natural environment. Organizers started Earth Day in response to a massive oil spill in waters near Santa Barbara, Calif., in 1969.
Source: U.S. Census Bureau
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Renewable Energy
$9.7 billion
Revenues in 2012 for electric power generation industries that use renewable energy resources, such as hydro, wind, geothermal, biomass, solar and other electric power generation. This figure is up 46.5 percent from $6.6 billion in 2007.
716
The number of wind, geothermal, biomass, solar and other electric power generation business establishments in 2012, more than double the number of establishments (312) in 2007.
5,347
The number of employees in wind electric power generation establishments, the most among the industries using renewable energy in 2012.
$5.1 billion
Revenues for the wind electric power generation industry in 2012, the highest among the industries using renewable energy resources. Hydroelectric power generation followed with revenues of $2.5 billion. Geothermal electric power generation had revenues of just under $1 billion ($981.2 million), followed by biomass electric power generation, with $721.5 million in revenues, solar electric power generation, with $427.6 million, and other electric power generation, with $43.4 million.
Heating and Cooling the Home
2.5 million
Estimated number of occupied housing units across the country primarily heated by wood in 2014, which is 2.1 percent of all homes.
59,558
Estimated number of occupied housing units across the country using solar energy in 2014 as their primary source of heat, which is less than 1 percent of all homes.
56.8 million
Estimated number of occupied housing units across the country primarily heated by utility gas in 2014, which is 48.8 percent of all homes.
91%
Estimated percent of newly-built single-family homes across the country with air conditioning in 2014.
Commuting to Work
26 minutes
Estimated average time workers age 16 and older across the country spent getting to work in 2014, up from 25.8 minutes in 2013 and 25.7 minutes in 2012.
32.3 and 32.6 minutes
Estimated average time workers age 16 and older in Maryland and New York spent getting to work in 2014, the longest commute time in the nation.
16.7
Estimated average time workers age 16 and older in Maryland and New York spent getting to work in 2014, the longest commute time in the nation.
4,011,094
Estimated number of people who walked to work in 2014. This comes out to about 2.7 percent of the American workforce.
Working in the Nuclear and Forestry Fields
54,863
Number of workers employed in forestry and logging establishments across the U.S. in 2013, up from 53,515 in 2012.
50,410
Number of workers employed in nuclear electric power generation establishments across the U.S. in 2013.
51.0%
Increase in the number of nuclear electric power generation establishments across the U.S. in 2013, from 75 establishments in 2003 to 147 establishments in 2013.
-32%
The drop in the consumption of coal in the U.S. manufacturing sector from 2002 to 2010, going from 1,956 trillion Btu in 2002 down to 1,328 trillion Btu consumed in 2010.
2,453 square feet
The median size of a single-family home completed in 2014.
620,000
The number of single-family homes completed in 2014. Of these, 64,000 had two or fewer bedrooms and 282,000 had four bedrooms or more.
$345,800
The average sales price of a new single-family home sold in 2014.
11,000
The number of multifamily buildings built across the U.S. in 2014. Of these, 7,000 used electricity as the primary heating fuel.
1.1%
Increase in the number of recyclable material merchant wholesalers establishments across the U.S. in 2013, from 8,855 establishments in 2012 to 8,951 establishments in 2013.
113,440
Number of employees working in recyclable material merchant wholesale establishments in 2013, down 1.9 percent from 115,611 employees in 2012.
$95.8 billion
Sales for recyclable material merchant wholesale establishments in 2012, up 19.6 percent from $80.1 billion in 2007. 2012 sales for recyclable paper and paperboard products: $9.8 billion. 2012 sales for recyclable plastics products: $2.3 billion. 2012 sales for recyclable glass products: $583.5 million.
$8.8 billion
Product shipments value for recycled paperboard in 2014.
$1.9 billion
Estimated revenue for hazardous waste management collection services in 2014 for U.S. waste collection employer firms. This is up 6.7 percent from 2013.
$5.5 billion
Estimated revenue for hazardous waste treatment and disposal services in 2014 for U.S. waste treatment and disposal employer firms.
$14.3 billion
Estimated revenue for local, fixed-route passenger transportation, by road and transit rail in 2014 for U.S. Transit and Ground Passenger Transportation employer firms. This is up 7.5 percent from 2013.
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