US greenhouse gas emissions: Down again

Emissions of greenhouse gases in the U.S. fell nearly 10 percent between 2005 and 2012, according to the latest tally from the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency.

That puts the nation more than halfway toward its pledge of reaching a 17 percent reduction by 2020.

The EPA, which published its report on Tuesday, said emissions fell 3.4 percent from 2011 to 2012. The agency credited "the decrease in energy consumption across all sectors in the U.S. economy, and the decrease in carbon intensity for electricity generation due to fuel switching from coal to natural gas."

It said that other factors included "a decrease in transportation sector emissions attributed to an increase in fuel efficiency across different transportation modes and limited new demand for passenger transportation."

You can find out more about the inventory report here.