The West was also affected by exceptionally high electricity and gasoline prices, leading more metropolitan residents to consume less simply due to cost concerns. On the whole, the nation’s CO2 emission has been steadily on the rise, climbing 9.1 percent in the first five years of the millennium. Again, the metropolitan average was a few notches lower at 7.5 percent. While it will come as no surprise to anyone that energy costs are making suburban and rural living more expensive, the data in the Brookings report may point to a coming trend of the necessity of denser, more urban living.
