Power Sector Data

EPA collects continuously monitored CO₂, NO_X, SO₂, and mercury emissions data from electric generating units (EGUs) to check compliance with a variety of federal air quality programs. EGUs are also required to submit operations data, facility information, monitoring plans, and quality assurance (QA) test information. These data comprise EPA’s Power Sector Data. EPA provides a variety of tools, detailed below, to understand and access the Power Sector Emissions Data.

Resources

Guide

• Power Sector Emissions Data Guide (pdf) (366.01 KB, July 18, 2022) : a useful starter guide for those interested in an overview of the data available in EPA's Power Sector Emissions Data, how the data are collected and quality assured, and how to download the data.
  • CAPD's Power Sector Emissions Data FAQs

Crosswalk

• EPA-EIA Power Sector Data Crosswalk: EPA and U.S. Energy Information Administration (EIA) both collect substantial amounts of information about EGUs and maintain robust datasets covering facility attributes, operation, and emissions. The methodology to match the different unit IDs is available in R script and the results are available as a spreadsheet (xlsx) and delimited text file (csv).

Tools

• Clean Air Markets Program Data (CAMPD):  a web-based application that allows you to create custom queries, view reports, and download data.
  • Clean Air Markets API Portal (CAM API): these REST APIs allow you to access Clean Air Markets Program data directly from a tool (Excel) or your favorite programming language (Python, R, JavaScript, etc.).
• Emissions Collection and Monitoring Plan System (ECMPS): a web-based tool which functions as a reporting mechanism for sources when logged-in, but provides facility-related data (monitoring plans, quality assurance test data, emissions data) without needing to log-in. This tool has replaced the Field Audit Checklist Tool (FACT), which is no longer available.
• Monitoring Plan Viewer (MPV):  a website to view monitoring plan data and other facility information.
• Emissions & Generation Resource Integrated Database (eGRID): a database that combines EPA's Power Sector Emissions Data and Energy Information Administration data in order to determine annual emissions and emission rates (lbs/MWh) at various aggregated levels in the U.S.
  • Power Profiler: a web-based tool to calculate emissions from your electricity use based on eGRID data.

Analyses

• Monitoring Insights: brief analyses that provide insights into the Power Sector Emissions Data, such as the use of substitute data.

Frequent Questions

Which tool is best for me to use?

What other data are available?

How do I cite the Power Sector Emissions Data?

EPA suggests the following citation for its Power Sector Emissions Data:

United States Environmental Protection Agency (EPA). “Power Sector Data.” Washington, DC: Office of Atmospheric Protection, Clean Air and Power Division. Available from EPA’s Clean Air Markets Program Data website: https://campd.epa.gov.

How do I cite eGRID Data?

The suggested citation can be found here.