With October being National Energy Awareness Month and 52 percent of Americans saying that protecting the environment should be prioritized above economic growth, the personal-finance website WalletHub earlier this month released its report on 2024’s Greenest Cities in America. The report also included expert commentary, to identify the places where people prioritize living sustainably and protecting the environment.

Six of the top 10 ‘greenest’ cities are in the Golden State, with San Diego taking the top spot on the list. On the flip side, four Arizona cities were in the bottom, including Glendale as the ‘least green’ city rated in the study.

WalletHub compared the 100 largest U.S. cities across 28 key indicators of environmental friendliness and sustainability. The data set ranges from greenhouse-gas emissions per capita to the water quality to green job opportunities.

Greenest Cities in America

Coming in at number one was San Diego, California, followed by Washington, DC in second. Third was Honolulu, HI, followed by San Francisco, CA, fourth; San Jose, CA, fifth; Seattle, WA, sixth; Oakland, CA, seventh; Portland, OR, eighth; Fremont, CA, ninth; and Irvine, CA taking tenth place.

Least Green Cities in America

At number 91 on the list was Louisville, Kentucky, followed by Detroit, MI, 92; Newark, NJ, 93; Chandler, AZ, 94; Gilbert, AZ, 95; Baton Rouge, LA, 96; Mesa, AZ, 97; Houston, TX, 98; Hialeah, FL, 99; and last on the list, Glendale, AZ coming in at number 100.

Best vs. Worst

Lubbock, Texas, has the lowest median air-quality index, which is 4.2 times lower than in Riverside and San Bernardino, California, the cities with the highest. (Lowest index = Best).

Anchorage, Alaska, has the most green space, which is 46.3 times more than in Hialeah, Florida, the city with the least.

San Francisco, California and St. Paul, Minnesota have the highest walk score, which is 4.2 times higher than in Chesapeake, Virginia, the city with the lowest.

Honolulu has the most farmers markets (per square root of population), which is 75.4 times more than in Arlington, Texas, the city with the fewest.

“San Diego is the greenest city in America, in part because it leads the country in the number of solar panel installations per capita. Over 43 percent of the city’s electricity comes from renewable sources, the seventh-highest percentage in the country. San Diego has plenty of other environmentally-conscious policies worth noting. For example, it bans plastic bags and has a bike-sharing program. San Diego also leads the country when it comes to the number of certified organic farms per capita,” said Chip Lupo, WalletHub Analyst “There are plenty of things that individuals can do to adopt a green lifestyle, from recycling to sharing rides to installing solar panels on their homes. However, living in one of the greenest cities can make it even easier to care for the environment, due to sustainable laws and policies, access to locally-grown produce and infrastructure that allows residents to use vehicles less often. The greenest cities also are better for your health due to superior air and water quality.”

To view the full report, visit: https://wallethub.com/edu/most-least-green-cities/16246

Expert Commentary

Which green policies or investments offer the biggest bang for the buck?

“This depends on the circumstances of the particular city. In Denver, for example, buildings represent more than half of greenhouse gas emissions. Investing in heat pumps for heating and cooling is a strong investment for Denver as is investing in insulation. The inflation reduction act provides a number of incentives for cities to make good green investments. That is a good place to start. Solar panels in some cities. Wind power in other places. Geography matters. Preserving ecosystem services is also a high priority. We have lost half the world’s coral reefs in my lifetime. We are paying the price for that. Similar loss of wetlands that provide myriad benefits to our wellbeing, our society, and our economy.”

Paul Sutton – Professor, University of Denver

“This is difficult to gauge off the cuff. Location will remain a determinant of the success of climate adaptation policies. Coastal cities would benefit from considering alternatives that support industries impacted by disruptions to coastal activities (tourism, fishing, boat building and maintenance, etc.). Inland cities are already suffering from the impact of urban heat, which will be exacerbated by droughts and serious changes in precipitation regimes (most likely, there will be fewer, more severe rains). In all cases, nature-based solutions, such as beach nourishment and the rebuilding of natural buffers, will be most cost-effective in coastal zones. Meanwhile, urban reforestation and reducing the density of heat accumulators (any hard surfaces, especially asphalt) would be most impactful for inland cities exposed to an increasing number of days over 100 degrees Fahrenheit, which we are already experiencing in California and Arizona. Nature-based solutions are, in aggregate, more cost-effective. It is not just a way of being ‘green’; it makes good business sense.”

Fernando DePaolis, Ph.D. – Associate Professor, Middlebury Institute of International Studies

What are some easy ways individuals can go green without much cost or effort?

“There are tons of incentives for buying electric vehicles, installing solar panels, installing heat pumps. In addition – the costs of gasoline and electricity are projected to increase dramatically. If you can get your ‘gas’ from solar panels for your electric car and your electricity from the same solar panels you will avoid the inevitable price increases in gasoline and electricity that are coming.”

Paul Sutton – Professor, University of Denver

“Many states offer incentives for installing solar panels on single-family homes, often at almost no cost to homeowners. Buying local is a way to reduce the transportation component of carbon-equivalent emissions. This is not always easy or convenient, but we have seen a steady increase. Lower consumption overall is another way to reduce the aggregate carbon footprint of our communities. If you wash your clothes four times instead of five over the same period and wear them just 20 percent longer, you would be making a huge contribution to reducing the extraction of raw materials, manufacturing energy and water use, and transportation impacts.”

Fernando DePaolis, Ph.D. – Associate Professor, Middlebury Institute of International Studies

How can state and local authorities attract renewable energy companies and other green businesses?

“Businesses look for financial opportunities. Green investment has to be incentivized through government. During WWII the government said we will be buying tanks and airplanes so businesses responded by building tanks and airplanes. We need the same sense of urgency regarding the polycrisis. Policies like the Inflation Reduction Act are a good start. State and local authorities are applying for grants that provide money to make green investments. Up to this point the government has failed at state, local, national and international levels. Primarily for listening to economists that said that mitigating climate change would be too expensive. They were sadly very wrong. The people are now feeling the costs of not dealing with climate change. I urge your readers to look at what is happening to their home insurance bills. Insurance companies are cancelling policies and dramatically raising prices due to extreme weather events that climate change is causing: Storms, Hail, Fire, Flood, etc. I would like to see the fossil fuel companies be held accountable for this damage and fines imposed upon them to help us make the green investments we need going forward.”

Paul Sutton – Professor, University of Denver

“Historically, fiscal policy in the form of tax incentives has been a mainstay of industrial development advocates. However, many are doubting the real effectiveness of those policies as a means to develop the much-needed shared prosperity our cities need. Many of the renewable energy industrial compacts have a relatively small employment footprint. Automated processes and the budding AI expansion into all kinds of businesses make the image of the future even more uncertain. But there are parts of that industrial compact that have been overlooked. Soon, if we are not there already, we will experience a mismatch between the labor force we are developing and what employers will need in the renewable energy space. This is where I think community colleges can make a huge difference in creating programs that will educate the next generation of technicians needed for the renewable energy industries. Yes, we will still need people with MBAs and engineering degrees, but we are not covering the lower and intermediate levels of the labor force. On the manufacturing side, it is difficult to think of an easy way to dislodge China’s dominance in areas such as solar panels. American cities would have a hard time convincing investors to locate large manufacturing facilities in their region. Both the Trump and Biden administrations limited imports from China either by imposing additional tariffs or by closing loopholes used by Chinese firms to circumvent those hurdles. So, for cities to successfully insert themselves into the renewable energy sector, they will need to focus on the service side: design, management, building local facilities, maintenance, etc., rather than on the manufacturing side – and that includes batteries as well.”

Fernando DePaolis, Ph.D. – Associate Professor, Middlebury Institute of International Studies