Despite all the collateral damage that the recent economic downturn has brought, it also helped the environment, according to the International Energy Agency. The news came in during the United Nations climate negotiations held in Bangkok, Thailand, on Oct. 6.

The IEA, a Paris-based independent agency founded during the oil crisis of the early 1970s by the world's 28 richest countries, reported a possible 3 percent decrease in carbon dioxide emissions in 2009, due largely to the financial crisis.

A statistician at the IEA, Steve Gervais, said they were able to determine that the financial crisis was 75 percent accountable for the decrease by comparing the gross domestic product to carbon emissions.The majority of the reduction comes from the fact that there is less industrial activity, said the IEA.

The decrease is the steepest in the last 40 years, according to an IEA report published on Oct. 6.

"This would lead to emissions in 2020 being 5 percent lower -- even in the absence of additional policies -- than the IEA estimated just 12 months ago," according to the same report.

However, the IEA warned the world that one-quarter of the carbon dioxide emissions comes from transportation and that much needs to be done to avoid dramatic climate changes.

"The first priority should be to adopt technologies and practices that are cost-effective today. This will lead to substantial gains in vehicle fuel economy -- we target a 50 percent improvement by 2030 for new light-duty vehicles," wrote IEA Executive Director Nobuo Tanaka in the foreword of the book "Transport, Energy and CO2: Moving Toward Sustainability."

At the state level, California has been affected by the recession and hasn't been able to build as many highways, construct as many buildings.

"The economy has affected the state's ability to build highways, so not as much work has been done, so not as much energy has been used," said Gennet Paauwe, spokeswoman for the California Air Resources Board.

She said that, overall, there hasn't been as much construction and homebuying, which has reduced how much energy the state of California has used in 2009.

Some people, however, don't think that the reduction in energy consumption has much to do with the economy.

Lisa Fasano, director of communications at the Bay Area Air Quality Management District, said she thinks that the decrease is the result of efforts that people have made over the years to use sustainable sources of energy.

"I wouldn't have sat in front of a computer with an energy sticker on it five years ago," Fasano said.

But just at SF State a number of students can testify that the economic crisis has affected the way they use energy and how much of it they use.

"If the economy was better I may have had a car, but now I'm just taking less taxis and taking more public transportation," said Richard Hullinger, a 30-year-old senior in political science.

Over the past decade, the trends have changed in terms of the sources of energy people use in residential settings. According to a report published by the federal Energy Information Administration, "Emissions of Greenhouse Gases in the United States 2007," natural gas consumption has decreased by about 1 percent. Coal consumption has decreased by about 4 percent and petroleum consumption has decreased by about 0.8 percent. The only increase reported is in electricity consumption, which has swelled by about 1 percent.

Christopher Scardina, a 22-year-old junior in creative writing, said he's always cared about the environment but that his financial situation has made him more aware of how much he spends on energy.

"I unplug all my appliances and take public transportation because gas has because so expensive," Scardina said. "I only take my car when I go back home to Monterey."

The transportation sector has led all U.S. end-use sectors in emissions of carbon dioxide since 1999. However, with higher fuel prices and slower economic growth in 2007, emissions from the transportation sector were essentially unchanged from their 2006 level, according to data provided by the Energy Information Administration.

The numbers may get lower for 2008 and 2009 as the economy dropped significantly, but there isn't any data available yet as it takes time to compile the results from surveys.