Emission Factors

Measured conclusion: Deep-tested. L2 outcome: tools_ok.

Keyless US grid carbon + power cost by ZIP: eGRID Scope 2, Scope 1 fuels, site ranking, clean hours

Add to your agent

Copy this into your MCP client config:

{
  "mcpServers": {
    "Emission Factors": {
      "url": "https://emission-factors.com/mcp",
      "transport": "streamable-http"
    }
  }
}

Measured tools (11)

• lookup_emission_factor read-only

  Look up EPA eGRID electricity emission factors for a US ZIP code. Returns CO2e (kg/kWh and lb/MWh), CO2, CH4, N2O, NOx, SO2, non-baseload rate, carbon-free %, generation mix (coal/gas/nuclear/hydro/wind/solar etc.), eGRID subregion code, the data year, and the Green-e residual mix rate (the market-based Scope 2 factor). For Scope 2 emissions from a kWh total, use calculate_emissions, which does the arithmetic for both methods.

  Parameters:

  • zip (required) — string — 5-digit US ZIP code (e.g. "94105"); ZIP+4 accepted
  • year — string — eGRID edition: 2023 (default, official EPA) or 2024 (EPA's public eGRID code run on 2024 data by Cornerstone; EPA has not published eGRID2024)

  Hints: read-only yes · destructive not declared · idempotent not declared · open-world not declared

• lookup_by_coordinates read-only

  Look up emission factors by latitude/longitude. Uses US Census Geocoder to resolve to ZIP first, then returns the same data as lookup_emission_factor. Useful when you have a facility address or lat/lon but no ZIP.

  Parameters:

  • lat (required) — number — Latitude (decimal degrees)
  • lon (required) — number — Longitude (decimal degrees)

  Hints: read-only yes · destructive not declared · idempotent not declared · open-world not declared

• lookup_batch read-only

  Look up emission factors for up to 100 ZIP codes in one call (split longer lists). Returns one compact row per ZIP - subregion, CO2e kg/kWh (location-based), residual mix (market-based), carbon-free %, utility - unless full is true, which returns every field (about 2 KB per ZIP).

  Parameters:

  • zips (required) — array — Array of US ZIP codes (5 digits or ZIP+4)
  • full — boolean — Return complete candidate records (all pollutants, generation mix) instead of compact rows. Default false.

  Hints: read-only yes · destructive not declared · idempotent not declared · open-world not declared

• calculate_emissions read-only

  Calculate Scope 2 CO2e for a facility from its ZIP and kWh, using both GHG Protocol methods: location-based (eGRID subregion rate) and market-based (Green-e residual mix applied to kWh not covered by RECs, PPAs or green tariffs). Returns kg CO2e for each method with the factors used.

  Parameters:

  • zip (required) — string — 5-digit US ZIP code (ZIP+4 accepted)
  • kwh (required) — number — Electricity consumption in kWh
  • year — string — eGRID edition (default 2023). Market-based needs 2023.
  • renewable_kwh — number — Optional: kWh covered by contractual instruments (RECs, PPAs, green tariff). Counted at zero in the market-based result. Default 0.

  Hints: read-only yes · destructive not declared · idempotent not declared · open-world not declared

• hourly_intensity read-only

  Get hourly grid carbon intensity (kg CO2e per kWh) for any US ZIP code, derived from EIA-930 hourly fuel-mix data. Data lags up to about a day (not real-time). Returns time series with per-hour fuel mix, total generation, and carbon intensity. For timing and analysis (demand response, load shifting, grid patterns), not inventory reporting: it uses fixed per-fuel combustion factors on in-BA generation (no imports), so its values don't match eGRID's annual factors. For live or forecast intensity, WattTime or Electricity Maps are better options.

  Parameters:

  • ba — string — Balancing authority code directly (e.g. CISO, ERCO, PJM, MISO, NYIS). Use this OR zip.
  • zip — string — 5-digit US ZIP code (or use ba parameter)
  • hours — integer — Number of most recent hours to return (default 24, max 168 = 1 week).
  • aggregate — string — Optional: return the 24-hour average profile over the last 7 days (168 hours) instead of the hourly series. Buckets are UTC hours; for a local-time scheduling window use cleanest_hours.

  Hints: read-only yes · destructive not declared · idempotent not declared · open-world not declared

• plant_emissions read-only

  Get emissions from EPA Clean Air Markets Division (CAMD) for a specific US power plant or a state: fossil units over 25 MW reporting to the Acid Rain Program and CSAPR. Per facility returns total CO2 (short tons), gross generation (MWh), heat input (mmBtu), NOx and SO2 (lb), primary fuel type, operating hours, and derived emissions rate (kg CO2/MWh). CAMD publishes by quarter, so the default window is the last 7 days of the latest published quarter (latest_published_date in the response); later dates are not available yet. Default output is a per-facility summary from daily data; format=hourly returns unit-hour records for small windows. Use for plant-specific carbon accounting, state-level fossil emissions and "dirtiest plants in [state]" queries.

  Parameters:

  • end — string — Custom end date YYYY-MM-DD (optional, overrides days).
  • days — integer — Number of most recent days to include (1-90, default 7).
  • begin — string — Custom begin date YYYY-MM-DD (optional, overrides days).
  • limit — integer — Summary only: return the top N facilities by CO2 (default 25); facilities_total gives the full count.
  • state — string — US state (2-letter code or full name, e.g. TX or Texas) for a state-wide aggregate.
  • format — string — "summary" (default) aggregates by facility; "hourly" returns raw CAMD unit-hour records, about 0.8 KB each (a 9-unit plant-day was 172 KB), so use it with facility_id and 1-2 days.
  • facility_id — integer — EPA CAMD/ORIS facility code (e.g. 3 for Barry, AL). Find codes in the summary_by_facility of a state query, or at https://campd.epa.gov/.

  Hints: read-only yes · destructive not declared · idempotent not declared · open-world not declared

• utility_tariff read-only

  Get the actual utility-specific electricity rate (not state average) for a US ZIP code or named utility. Returns the current default tariff with effective rate ($/kWh), fixed monthly charge, tier count, TOU indicator, and effective date. Data source: OpenEI URDB (NREL-hosted). With a ZIP, matches the ZIP's utility by EIA ID. Returns currently-effective tariffs; when URDB has none flagged as default (common for Commercial/Industrial) it returns the most recent ones and says so in warnings, including when the newest available tariff has expired. Does not cover Texas retail electric providers (deregulated market) - use electricity_rate there.

  Parameters:

  • zip — string — 5-digit US ZIP code
  • eiaid — integer — EIA utility ID (joins with EIA Form 861)
  • limit — integer — Max tariffs to return (1-20, default 5)
  • sector — string — Default "Residential" (case-insensitive; RES/COM/IND codes accepted)
  • utility — string — Utility name (e.g. "Pacific Gas & Electric Co", "Consolidated Edison Co-NY Inc")

  Hints: read-only yes · destructive not declared · idempotent not declared · open-world not declared

• electricity_rate read-only

  Get the latest monthly average retail electricity rate ($/kWh and cents/kWh) for any US ZIP code, broken out by sector (residential, commercial, industrial, etc.). Data is state-level from EIA Form 861 - a ballpark, not utility- or ZIP-specific tariffs (use utility_tariff for those).

  Parameters:

  • zip (required) — string — 5-digit US ZIP code

  Hints: read-only yes · destructive not declared · idempotent not declared · open-world not declared

• compare_sites read-only

  Compare and rank 2-25 candidate US sites (ZIP codes) for a facility, data center or EV/flexible load on grid carbon and electricity cost in one call. Per site: eGRID CO2e kg/kWh (location-based), Green-e residual mix (market-based), carbon-free %, $/kWh for the sector (the state's latest full-year average, EIA-861 annual; the ZIP's own 2023 utility average is shown as a reference), and the cleanest daily window from the 7-day hourly profile of its balancing authority, in the ZIP's local time. lowest_cost and best_combined are null unless every site has a rate. With annual_kwh, also annual tCO2e and cost. Returns competition ranks by carbon, cost and combined, gap percentages, and best_* = null with *_tied lists when sites tie.

  Parameters:

  • zips (required) — array — Candidate US ZIP codes (5 digits or ZIP+4)
  • sector — string — Retail rate sector. Default COM (commercial); use IND for industrial/data-center loads.
  • duration — integer — Length of the cleanest daily window in hours (default 4)
  • annual_kwh — number — Optional annual consumption in kWh (e.g. 87,600,000 for a 10 MW constant load) to get annual tCO2e and cost per site

  Hints: read-only yes · destructive not declared · idempotent not declared · open-world not declared

• cleanest_hours read-only

  Find the cleanest (lowest grid carbon) contiguous window of N hours in the day to run a flexible load (batch jobs, EV charging, pumping, HVAC pre-cooling) at a US ZIP code or balancing authority. Based on the hour-of-day pattern of the last 7 days (168 hours) of EIA-930 data, in local time. Returns the cleanest and dirtiest windows, % saved vs the daily average, and all hours ranked; between limits the windows to given local hours (e.g. overnight). A scheduling guide from recent history, not a forecast.

  Parameters:

  • ba — string — Balancing authority code (e.g. CISO, ERCO, PJM, MISO, NYIS). Use this OR zip.
  • zip — string — 5-digit US ZIP code (or use ba)
  • between — string — Optional local hours the window must fall in, start-end, wrapping past midnight: e.g. "20-06" for an EV fleet parked overnight, "9-17" for working hours.
  • duration — integer — Window length in hours (default 4)

  Hints: read-only yes · destructive not declared · idempotent not declared · open-world not declared

• calculate_fuel_emissions read-only

  Calculate Scope 1 stationary-combustion emissions (CO2, CH4, N2O and CO2e) for fuels burned on site, using the GHG Emission Factors Hub 2026 (Cornerstone, successor to EPA's Hub; IPCC AR6 GWPs) by default, or EPA's 2025 edition (AR5) with edition=2025. Pass one or more items with fuel, quantity and unit, e.g. natural gas in therms/ccf/mcf/scf, propane/diesel/heating oil in gallons, coal in short tons. Biomass CO2 is reported separately (biogenic). Stationary sources only: for vehicle fuel the CO2 per gallon is the same, but CH4/N2O factors differ and are not included. Returns per-item and total CO2e. Pair with calculate_emissions for a facility's electricity (Scope 2).

  Parameters:

  • items (required) — array
  • edition — string — Hub edition: 2026 (default; Cornerstone, AR6 GWPs) or 2025 (EPA, AR5 GWPs). Fuel factors are the same; CO2e differs slightly.

  Hints: read-only yes · destructive not declared · idempotent not declared · open-world not declared

Publisher website Repository

Measured by MCPYP probing. Untested fields are omitted, never estimated. Listing is always free; MCPYP never proxies calls or stores user tokens.