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Carbon dioxide emissions decreased in every state in the U.S. between 2005 and 2023, according to recently released from the U.S. Energy Information Administration.

What’s going on: Per capita emissions from primary energy consumption declined in those 18 years, and total energy-related carbon dioxide emissions in the U.S. fell 20%.

• Meanwhile, the U.S. population grew 14% in that time, “leading to a 30% decrease in per capita [carbon dioxide] emissions.”

Why it happened: “[E]missions across the country primarily declined because less coal was burned in the electric power sector. Increased electricity generation from natural gas, which releases about half as many [carbon dioxide] emissions per unit of energy when combusted as coal, and from non-[carbon dioxide]-emitting wind and solar generation offset the decrease in coal generation.”

Zoom in: Maryland led the U.S. in the decline, with a 49% drop, followed by Washington, D.C. (-48%), Georgia (-45%), Delaware (-43%) and North Carolina (-42%).