Measuring progress on emissions reductions helps us track our progress and identify new opportunities to lessen our contribution to climate change. It also helps us understand which areas of change are under our control, and which areas require collaboration with others.
Our goal is to reduce overall emissions by 70% by 2030 from a 2018 baseline.
Greenhouse gases (GHGs) absorb radiation from the sun and trap heat in the earth's atmosphere. The more GHGs there are, the more heat is trapped in our atmosphere, leading to global warming and climate change. GHGs measured here include carbon dioxide, methane and nitrous oxide.
Since 2005, Boulder has calculated the community greenhouse gas (GHG) inventory to share our community emissions data. Current inventories now include more GHG sources than earlier inventories, giving a more accurate representation of our contribution to climate change.
The 2023 Community Greenhouse Gas Inventory (PDF) was calculated following the Global Protocol for Community-Scale Greenhouse Gas Emission Inventories (GPC), the current recognized standard for GHG emissions reporting.
In any given year, factors such as heating and cooling degree days, economic trends and significant local developments impact emissions. Careful attention to and consideration of these factors is required to accurately measure progress and inform next steps in policy and action.
Measuring progress on emissions reductions helps us track our progress and identify new opportunities to lessen our contribution to climate change. It also helps us understand which areas of change are under our control, and which areas require collaboration with others.
More than 70% of global carbon emissions come from cities like Boulder. Hundreds of these cities are measuring GHG emissions to track progress and identify new opportunities to lessen negative climate impacts.
The City of Boulder and the Boulder community are committed to mitigating climate change by reducing GHG emissions. Learn more about the Boulder community’s progress toward this goal.
The City of Boulder is committed to reducing emissions from city operations and facilities. Learn more about the city's progress toward this goal.
Boulder's consumption-based emissions inventory looks at emissions that occur anywhere in the world, as a result of Boulder community members’ activities. It includes emissions not previously measured from categories such as food, goods and services, and underscores the importance of addressing our upstream emissions.
