Tulsa and OKC Trail Behind in Green Rankings
WalletHub, the personal finance company that likes to release all sorts of survey results nationally, is out with its latest–-a list of the Greenest and Least Greenest cities in the U.S.
Based on the list, Tulsa is listed number 66 and Oklahoma City is ranked 89th greenest city in the nation, well behind the number one choice of San Jose, California and equally behind the number two pick, Washington, D.C.
While Tulsa might have a stronger ranking than Oklahoma City, it also landed on a list of those with the highest greenhouse-gas emissions per capita.
- 1. Anaheim, CA
- 2. Oakland, CA
- 3. Honolulu, HI
- 4. Buffalo, NY
- 5. Riverside, CA
- 90. Tulsa, OK
- T-91. Houston, TX
- T-91. Denver, CO
- T-91. Baton Rouge, LA
- T-91. Corpus Christi, TX
As WalletHub stated in its announcement, “Green” living means a choice to engage in cleaner, more sustainable habits in order to preserve the planet as much as possible. Around 54% of Americans think that protecting the environment should be prioritized above economic growth. The good news is that the market for renewable energy is growing.
Clean energy and other “green” practices, such as recycling programs and urban agriculture, help create jobs and benefit both the environment and public health, all of which contribute to America’s bottom line. Recognizing those advantages, cities across the U.S. have increased their sustainability efforts and benefited economically.
To determine the cities promoting an environmentally friendly lifestyle, WalletHub compared the 100 largest cities across 28 key “green” indicators.
“Our data set ranges from greenhouse-gas emissions per capita to number of smart-energy policies and initiatives to green job opportunities.”
Why is San Jose ranked number one? Here is what WalletHub had to explain.
” San Jose is the greenest city in America, in part because it has the fifth-highest number of solar panel installations per capita. Over 47% of the city’s electricity comes from renewable sources, the fifth-highest percentage in the country.
One big positive impact of San Jose’s green practices is that it has the fourth-lowest Urban Heat Island Effect Index in the country. What that means is there’s only a relatively small amount of difference between the average temperature in the city and its less-developed immediate surroundings. In other words, the use of green energy in San Jose helps keep it from being an excessively hot city environment.
San Jose has plenty of other environmentally-conscious policies worth noting. For example, it bans plastic bags, has a bike-sharing program, and has numerous local initiatives that promote the use of green energy.”
Now if you’re wondering how the nation’s capitol came out as number two greenest, here’s what the website had to declare.
“Washington is the second-greenest city in America, in part because residents often grow their own food or buy it locally. Washington leads the country when it comes to the number of Community Supported Agriculture groups (CSAs) and community garden sites per capita. It also has the 12th-most farmers’ markets per capita.
In addition, Washington derives 48% of its energy from renewable sources, the fourth-highest percentage in the country. It also has the 18th-most alternative-fuel stations for vehicles and the ninth-most solar panel installations per capita.
Residents of our nation’s capital are good at conserving water, with the country’s fifth-lowest daily water consumption per capita. People also conserve gas by carpooling, as the city has the third-lowest percentage of commuters who drive alone to work.”
Hmmmm. Interesting Washington D.C. has so many farmers’ markets per capita and also leads the country in so many Community Supported Ag groups.
- T-1. Anchorage, AK
- T-1. Fremont, CA
- T-1. Scottsdale, AZ
- 4. Chesapeake, VA
- 5. Irvine, CA
- 94. Laredo, TX
- 95. Lexington-Fayette, KY
- 96. Baton Rouge, LA
- 97. Fresno, CA
- 98. Hialeah, FL
- 1. New York, NY
- 2. Jersey City, NJ
- 3. Washington, DC
- 4. San Francisco, CA
- 5. Boston, MA
- 96. Fort Wayne, IN
- 97. Laredo, TX
- 98. Wichita, KS
- 99. Bakersfield, CA
- 100. Corpus Christi, TX
- T-1. Portland, OR
- T-1. Minneapolis, MN
- T-3. Chicago, IL
- T-3. San Francisco, CA
- T-3. Denver, CO
- 96. Greensboro, NC
- T-97. Charlotte, NC
- T-97. Birmingham, AL
- 99. Nashville, TN
- 100. Winston-Salem, NC
- 1. Honolulu, HI
- 2. Miami, FL
- 3. San Jose, CA
- 4. San Francisco, CA
- 5. New York, NY
- 94. Irving, TX
- 95. Newark, NJ
- 96. San Bernardino, CA
- 97. Lincoln, NE
- 98. Arlington, TX