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Dallas Ranks 17th in Siemens-Economist Green City Index - cbl
Posted July 7, 2011
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Mike Rawlings
By Bill Murphy
DALLAS -- Eleven citybizlist cities are among the greenest in North America.
San Francisco was rated the greenest of all, with the Canadian city of Vancouver and New York taking the next two spots, in a survey by The Economist Intelligence Unit, sponsored by Siemens. New York topped in two other categories, and its innovative million-tree strategy was listed among six "exemplar projects."
The Economist, publisher of the eponymous British magazine, evaluated 27 American and Canadian cities on 31 quantitative and qualitative indicators to arrive at the Green City Index. Similar indices have been compiled for other continents except Africa, where the study is ongoing.
Siemens said the indices were created to help compare cities and to help policymakers and other stakeholders evaluate the strengths and weaknesses of individual cities. Cities also can study and emulate "exemplar projects" highlighted in the study to reduce environmental impact of business and other activities, Siemens said.
The index results illustrate "a remarkable feat of catch-up for the easterners," the report said, citing progress made by cities on the East Coast of the United States. The strength of those cities also "tells an important story about how local governments have successfully integrated environmental programs into broader development strategies to simultaneously revitalize their economies and make urban areas more livable," it added.
In the overall rankings, San Francisco came on top with a rating of 83.8 out of 100. Here's how the cities on citybizlist's radar ranked:
3. New York, 79.2
6. Boston, 72.6
8. Washington, D.C., 71.4
13. Philadelphia, 66.7
16. Houston, 62.6
17. Dallas, 62.3
18. Orlando, 61.1
20. Charlotte, 59.0
21. Atlanta, 57.8
22. Miami, 57.3
23. Pittsburgh, 56.6
The survey also separately ranked cities on nine parameters. Those parameters and the top three ranking cities for each are:
* CO2 emissions: Vancouver, Miami, New York
* Energy: Denver, Boston, San Francisco
* Land use: New York, Minneapolis, Ottawa (Canada)
* Buildings: Seattle, San Francisco, Washington
* Transport: New York, San Francisco, Vancouver
* Water: Calgary, Boston, New York
* Waste: San Francisco, Seattle, Los Angeles
* Air: Vancouver, San Francisco, New York
* Environmental governance: Denver, Washington, New York
For the complete Green City Index, see: http://tinyurl.com/29rt5z5
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