(UPDATED 10/24/19) Sacramento, CA ranked #9 on the WalletHub 2018 Greenest Cities in America list.
WalletHub compared the largest 100 cities in the U.S. across 26 key “green” indicators to determine the ranking (highest-lowest) of cities in the U.S. – and Sacramento placed #9 on the list. Not too shabby!
Ranking #1 overall was San Diego, CA with a total score of 72.53. Ranking last at #100 was Baton Rouge, LA with a total score of 36.07.
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Ranking #9 overall was Sacramento with a total score of 66.06:
- Environment Rank – 38
- Transportation Rank – 4
- Energy Source Rank – 19
- Life & Policy Rank – 9
Ranking and total score of other California cities in the Top 10:
- #2 – San Francisco – 72.14
- #4 – Irvine – 68.97
- #5 – San Jose – 68.69
- #7 – Fremont – 67.59
Ranking and total score of other California cities:
- #11 – Oakland – 63.83
- #16 – San Bernardino – 60.84
- #18 – Los Angeles – 59.60
- #19 – Chula Vista – 58.48
- #22 – Riverside – 56.13
- #23 – Santa Ana – 55.93
- #24 – Long Beach – 55.87
- #25 – Anaheim – 55.38
- #30 – Stockton – 54.04
- #31 – Fresno – 53.75
- #57 – Bakersfield – 48.72
Methodology Used to Determine Greenest Cities in America Ranking
So you might ask – how did WalletHub determine its rankings?
To determine the ranking four key areas were evaluated by WalletHub using 26 relevant metrics. The four key areas and the metrics evaluated were:
- Environment (median air quality index, greenhouse-gas emissions per capita; urban heat island effect, green space, water quality, daily water consumption per capita, share of green hotels; population density, light pollution level)
- Transportation (share of commuters who drive alone, average commute time by car, miles of bicycle lanes; presence of bike-sharing program; annual excess fuel consumption, intersection density, accessibility to jobs by public transit, alternative-fuel stations per capita)
- Energy sources (share of electricity from renewable sources, solar photovoltaic (PV) installations per capita, number of smart-energy policies & initiatives)
- Lifestyle & Policy (farmers markets & CSA programs per capita, community garden plots per capita, “green” job opportunities, number of local programs promoting green-energy use)
You might have noted that “recycling” was not one of the metrics used – and wondered why. The answer – the lack of comparable city-level data i.e. metrics that either measure the availability of recycling programs or the amount of waste recycled in each city.
For additional details on the city rankings and the methodology check out the full WalletHub story at 2018’s Greenest Cities in America.
See related blog post: Where Does Sacramento Rank?
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