FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
July 21, 2026
CONTACT: Report authors are available to answer media questions. To arrange an interview, please direct media inquiries to shannanlenke.stoll@envirodatagov.org.
Greenhouse Gas Reporting Data Identifies Top Polluters
July 21, 2026 — A proposed rule effectively eliminating the Greenhouse Gas Reporting Program (GHGRP) ends (or severely delays) EPA’s collection of emissions data from over 8,000 polluting facilities. Since GHGRP data captures between 85 and 90% of all U.S. emissions, its elimination makes it difficult to identify the corporate and state actors most responsible for climate change in the U.S.
A new report by the Environmental Data & Governance Initiative (EDGI) analyzes greenhouse gas emissions as reported to the GHGRP, demonstrating how the data assign responsibility for the climate crisis. Key findings show that nationally, direct emissions fell to a record low in 2023 (the last year for which data are publicly available) even as projected emissions from suppliers of oil, gas, and other fuels reached a record high. Just two congressional districts in Texas contributed an outsized amount of supplier emissions—a massive 18%—in 2023. Meanwhile, a short list of corporate actors also had an outsized impact on emissions, with just 10 parent companies accounting for 23.3% of direct emissions and another 10 accounting for 53.2% of supplier emissions.
“Emissions data are an important tool in confronting the climate crisis,” says lead author Kimberly Barrett, an EDGI analyst and professor of sociology, anthropology, and criminology at Eastern Michigan University. “As EDGI’s analysis shows, GHGRP data can provide insight into where emissions occur and who is responsible. To hold these polluters accountable, we must know who they are. Eliminating the GHGRP obscures corporate accountability, serving the interests of polluters over the health of people.”
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The Environmental Data & Governance Initiative (EDGI) analyzes federal environmental data, websites, institutions, and policy. We seek to improve environmental data stewardship and to promote environmental health and environmental justice.