San Francisco 'out-greens' other US, Canadian cities

San Francisco is the most sustainable city in the US and Canada, according to a new analysis of 27 major metropolitan areas in both countries.

One of San Francisco’s greatest green strengths is waste, where it ranked number one among all the cities studied. It was the first community in the US to require residents and businesses to separate recyclables and compost material from regular trash. It’s also engaged the private sector in numerous innovative green initiatives.

The US and Canada Green City Index, commissioned by Siemens and compiled by the Economist Intelligence Unit, has Vancouver, New York City, Seattle and Denver rounding out the top five North American cities. The analysis compared cities’ environmental performance and policies across nine categories: carbon dioxide emissions, energy, land use, buildings, transport, water, waste, air quality and environmental governance.

“The Green Cities Index demonstrates that America’s cities are the driving force behind the nation’s sustainability efforts,” said Eric Spiegel, president and CEO of Siemens Corp. “Despite the fact that we do not have a federal climate policy in the United States — and no federal carbon standard — 21 of the 27 cities in the index have already set their own carbon reduction targets. Cities are creating comprehensive sustainability plans, utilizing current technology and proving everyday that we don’t have to wait to create a more sustainable future.”

While the study found a correlation between wealth and environmental performance, it is weaker in the US and Canada than in Europe and Asia.

“City budgets are as tight as they have ever been, but mayors are leading the charge around making their cities more sustainable because they know they can’t afford to push these decisions off until tomorrow,” said Alison Taylor, Chief Sustainability Officer for the Americas, Siemens Corp. “Our goal with the Green City Index is to identify best practices, advance good ideas and provide a baseline for cities to help them set targets for themselves so that they can serve as role models for others with their innovative policies.”

After the top five cities, metro areas were ranked as follows:

• Boston
• Los Angeles
• Washington, DC
• Toronto
• Minneapolis
• Chicago
• Ottawa
• Philadelphia
• Calgary
• Sacramento
• Houston
• Dallas
• Orlando
• Montreal
• Charlotte
• Atlanta
• Miami
• Pittsburgh
• Phoenix
• Cleveland
• St. Louis
• Detroit