The Center for Global Development, a think tank in Washington, D.C., launched a database Wednesday (with maps!) containing all sorts of useful information on over 50,000 of the world’s power plants, quantifying their CO2 emissions as well as the energy they produce, their locations, and more. (It’s more exciting than it sounds.) For instance, power plants account for 40 percent of U.S. greenhouse-gas emissions and the power sector itself is responsible for about 25 percent of world carbon emissions. According to CGD, there are 9,190 power plants in the U.S. that together spew 2.79 billion tons of CO2 each year. China’s 1,679 power plants emit 2.68 billion tons of CO2 a year. See? It’s addictive. In other power plant news, a “clean coal” plant that was under construction in Orlando, Fla., is being scrapped in favor of a natural-gas plant. Southern Co. said plans were changed due to uncertainty over state greenhouse-gas regulations.
