April 11, 2008 - The U.S. manufacturing sector spent $5.9 billion dollars on capital expenditures and $20.7 billion dollars on operating costs for pollution prevention and treatment in 2005, a new U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) survey finds. That's less than 5% of total new capital expenditures and less than 1% of total revenue for the sector, according to EPA.

The estimates appear in the U.S. Census report, "Pollution Abatement Costs and Expenditures (PACE): 2005 Survey." 2005 is the first year for which more accurate figures are available due to improvements in data collection and methodology, EPA says.

The study categorizes expenditures by pollution type and abatement activity and by industry and state. Reported costs include capital and operating costs for treatment/capture, prevention, recycling, and disposal, as well as depreciation of pollution abatement equipment.

For more information on the PACE report, click here.