42nd Earth Day: April 22, 2012

April 22, 2012, marks the 42nd anniversary of Earth Day-a day intended to inspire awareness and appreciation for the Earth’s natural environment. The day came from reaction to a massive oil spill in waters near Santa Barbara, Calif., in 1969. In honor of Earth Day-and Earth Week (April 16-22)-this edition of Profile America Facts for Features includes examples of Census Bureau statistics pertaining to energy and the environment.

Collecting Waste

$1.6 billion: Estimated revenue for “hazardous waste treatment – radioactive waste” in 2010 for U.S. employer firms was up 36.0 percent from 2009.

$715 million: Estimated revenue for “residential nonhazardous recyclable collection services” in 2010 for U.S. employer firms was up 26.5 percent from 2009.

$2.5 billion: Estimated revenue for “building remediation services-asbestos contamination” in 2010 for U.S. employer firms was up 22.8 percent from 2009.

Heating and Cooling the Home

2.2 million: Estimated number of occupied housing units across the country heated by wood in 2010, which is less than 2 percent of all homes.

38,010: Estimated number of occupied housing units across the country heated by solar energy in 2010.

57.0 million: Estimated number of occupied housing units across the country heated by utility gas in 2010, which is about half of all homes.

88 percent: Estimated percent of newly built single-family homes across the country with air-conditioning in 2010. In 1974, it was 48 percent.

Commuting to Work

25.3 minutes: Estimated average time for workers 16 years and older across the country spent getting to work in 2010, up from 25.1 minutes in 2009.

31.8 minutes: Estimated average time for workers 16 years and older in Maryland spent getting to work in 2010, the longest commute time in the nation.

16.1 minutes: Estimated average time workers 16 years and older in North Dakota spent getting to work in 2010, the shortest commute time in the nation.

Working in the Nuclear and Forestry Fields

41,502: Number of workers employed in nuclear electric power generation across the U.S. in 2009. They had an average salary of $110,355.

53,003: Number of workers employed in forestry and logging across the U.S. in 2009. They had an average salary of $35,127.

Building a House

2,392 square feet: The average size of a single-family house built in 2010, down from 2,438 square feet in 2009.

$272,900: The average sales price of a new single-family home in 2010, up from $270,900 in 2009 but down from $313,600 in 2007.

9,000: The number of multifamily buildings built across the U.S. in 2010. Of these, 62 percent had at least five units.

Watching Nature’s Fury

36.8 million: The 2010 Census population (as of April 1, 2010) of the coastal portion of states stretching from North Carolina to Texas-the area most threatened by Atlantic hurricanes. Approximately 12 percent of the nation’s population live in these areas.

15: The number of hurricanes to hit Florida’s Monroe County from 1960 to 2008, the most in the country. The 2010 population of 73,090 was down 8.2 percent from 2000. Lafourche Parish in Louisiana and Carteret County in North Carolina have each seen 14 hurricanes from 1960 to 2008. Lafourche’s population has risen 7.1 percent over the past decade while Carteret’s population has risen 11.9 percent. (Source: U.S. Census Bureau)