The U.S. Southeast--defined here as Alabama, Florida, Georgia, Mississippi, North Carolina, South Carolina, Tennessee, and Virginia--constitutes approximately one-fifth of the U.S. population and economy, and consequently, ranks among the largest energy consumers in the world (if the Southeast were a country, it would be the fifth largest energy consumer in the world). On a per capita basis, energy consumption is approximately equal to the national average, which is twice that of many European countries and nearly six times greater than that of developing countries such as China.