Which Are The Top 5 Greenest Cities In United States?

The EPA has no official ranking system in place for determining how green any city is. But a general consensus has made it clear that there are certain attributes that must be present in order for a city to be considered " green". These include designated bike lanes, getting around on a bicycle can be dangerous if there are no designated lanes. Road rage is a very real problem in the US and most of the automobile set has very little patience for bikers.

Another attribute that can get a city listed on the " Green Cities" list is the number of parks present in the city. Parks are necessary to produce oxygen and clear away carbon monoxide from the air. The more parks and living plants in a city the lower the amount of pollution in the air.

How efficient the public transportation system is run is also on the list of attractive attributes for a green city. Mass transit is a way to cut down on a whole lot of Co2 emissions. Public spaces are also a consideration. Cities that have areas designed for pedestrians to gather and walk around freely without fear of being hit by cars.

Having a number of high profile green buildings will also get you into consideration for being on the list. A green building is one that uses plants as roofing materials and solar energy for its electricity consumption. Green gardens are important criteria as well. Some city parks have started to adopt solar water fountains and rain barrels for creating a sustainable garden. Below you will find five cities that fit the above descriptions and more.

1. Portland Oregon has beat out all the cities in the United States and holds the title of greenest city. Over half of the cities power comes from a renewable resource. Most of the workers there ride bikes, use public transportation or carpool and it has 35 buildings that are certified " Green".

2. San Francisco California, this city has a penchant for turning empty roofs into power generators. Instead of regular roofing materials buildings in San Francisco are using specially designed honeycombed shaped photovoltaic cells to harness the suns energy. It started with the Moscone convention center and now the city is putting them on all of the municipal buildings.

3. Boston Massachusetts has plans in the works to use all of that fallen fall foliage to create useable energy for the city. the pan is to use the anaerobic bacteria to create methane gas.

4. Oakland California has a fleet of buses that run on hydrogen power. although the buses costs over 2mil each they have managed to make a dent in the high carbon levels in the air.

5. Eugene Oregon is at this level on the list because of its wind farms. The farms are producing 9% of the municipal energy supply. The city buys any energy the residents produce from their own wind generators.

It all starts with individuals. The people. Our choices and decisions go long way. Decisions of cities, counties, states, and countries the decisions of citizens residing in them. Consider adding few more green choices in your life and see the butterfly effect reflected in rest of the world!


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Amy C. invites you to browse delightful collection of solar fountains and rain barrels to create an ecological and sustainable garden decor.