How "green" is your city?
WalletHub compared the 100 largest cities in the US across 22 "green" indicators to determine which cities are doing the best job saving the planet— and which cities could be doing more to protect the environment.
They studied four main categories: "Environment,""Transportation,""Energy," and "Lifestyle and Policy."
To determine each city's "Environment" rank, WalletHub examined factors such as air quality, greenhouse gas emissions per capita, and the amount of green space. For "Transportation," the share of commuters who drive, annual excess fuel consumption, and the amount of alternative fuel stations per capita determined the ranking. "Energy" rankings were based on solar PV installations per capita and the share of electricity from renewable resources. And for "Lifestyle and Policy," WalletHub calculated the number of community gardens, farmers' markets, and local programs promoting "green" energy use.
Each of the 22 factors considered in the rankings were assigned a point value. Those points were combined to determine each city's total score. The lower the total score, the less environmentally friendly the city. As for the category rankings, they're on a scale of 1 to 100, with 100 being the least sustainable.
Here are the 50 least environmentally friendly cities in the US.
50. Denver, Colorado
Total score: 50.28
Environment rank: 98
Transportation rank: 13
Energy sources rank: 26
Lifestyle and policy rank: 10
49. Aurora, Colorado
Total score: 49.88
Environment rank: 43
Transportation rank: 73
Energy sources rank: 34
Lifestyle and policy rank: 93
48. Durham, North Carolina
Total score: 49.75
Environment rank: 32
Transportation rank: 54
Energy sources rank: 77
Lifestyle and policy rank: 55
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