Joshua Stevens took data from the American Community Survey (2021) and the Census Bureau to visualize the different types of heat sources used by American homes.
Categorized into five sources — oil, natural gas, propane, wood, and electricity — Stevens's map shows the Southern states' reliance on electric power grids, the decline of wood-reliant areas, and the proliferation of natural gas in major cities.
Key Takeaways:
Overall, the Washington Post reported earlier this year that, 47 percent of American homes are heated by natural gas, 40 percent by electricity, five percent by propane, four percent by oil, two percent by wood, and two percent by other sources.
While electric heating is the overwhelming majority in the South, bigger cities like Atlanta, Oklahoma City, Houston, and Charlotte all have a heavy concentration of homes with natural gas sources.
Homes in only two regions, the Northeast and Alaska, remain oil-reliant for heat.
