Greenhouse Gas Emissions Reduction
The majority of transportation GHGs come from internal combustion engines in passengers cars and light-duty trucks. While federal fuel economy standards will lower emissions in the future, MnDOT plays an important role in ensuring the state achieves the transportation sector GHG reduction goal.
The State of Minnesota and MnDOT are committed to reducing greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions which contribute to climate change.
The Next Generation Energy Act (2007) set a goal of reducing GHG emissions by 15 percent below 2005 levels by 2015, 30 percent below 2005 levels by 2025, and 80 percent below 2005 levels by 2050.
In January 2017, MnDOT updated its Statewide Multimodal Transportation Plan to establish a greenhouse gas emissions reduction goal for the transportation sector that aligns with the Next Generation Energy Act. The agency actively supports electric vehicle planning as one tool to help achieve the sector-level goal.
Sustainability Reporting
MnDOT was the first state agency to apply the Next Generation Energy Act GHG reduction goals to all agency operations, including fleet fuel use and electricity. MnDOT was also the first state in the country to create GHG reduction goals for the state highway construction program. The annual MnDOT Sustainability Report outlines the agency's sustainability goals, progress and strategies for achieving the goals.
- MnDOT 2017 Sustainability Report – Identifying sustainability strategies
- MnDOT 2016 Sustainability Report – Establishing a baseline