Green Power: The U.S.'s Top 10 Cities
Green Power: The U.S.'s Top 10 Cities
oakland photo: in2jazz
Which of the United State's 50 biggest cities is the greenest when it comes to using renewable energy? Portland, Oregon? San Francisco, perhaps? Seattle? Nope. The top spot goes to Oakland, the city across the Bay from San Francisco whose gritty reputation belies its crunchy environmental policies. Oakland gets 17 percent of its electricity from renewable sources such as geothermal, solar and wind, according to SustainLane, a San Francisco firm that compiles data on government sustainability initiatives. Three other California cities tied for second place with 12 percent of their electricity generated from renewable sources: San Francisco, San Jose and Sacramento.
Here's the rest of the list:
Portland, Oregon: 10 percent
Boston: 8.6 percent
San Diego: 8 percent
Austin: 6 percent
Los Angeles: 5 percent
Minneapolis: 4.5 percent
Seattle: 3.5 percent
Chicago: 2.5 percent
It's no accident that six of the top cities are in California. The Golden State has set aggressive renewable energy portfolio standards for its three big investor-owned utilities - PG&E (PCG), Southern California Edison (EIX) and San Diego Gas & Electric (SRE). And city-owned utilities like the Sacramento Municipal Utility District have been green-energy pioneers. One city to watch is Austin. The Texas capital's government has committed itself to going carbon neutral by 2020, and its municipal owned utility - Austin Energy, a leader in renewable energy - has been given a mandate to generate 100 megawatts of solar power and make all new plants zero emission.
oakland photo: in2jazz
Which of the United State's 50 biggest cities is the greenest when it comes to using renewable energy? Portland, Oregon? San Francisco, perhaps? Seattle? Nope. The top spot goes to Oakland, the city across the Bay from San Francisco whose gritty reputation belies its crunchy environmental policies. Oakland gets 17 percent of its electricity from renewable sources such as geothermal, solar and wind, according to SustainLane, a San Francisco firm that compiles data on government sustainability initiatives. Three other California cities tied for second place with 12 percent of their electricity generated from renewable sources: San Francisco, San Jose and Sacramento.
Here's the rest of the list:
Portland, Oregon: 10 percent
Boston: 8.6 percent
San Diego: 8 percent
Austin: 6 percent
Los Angeles: 5 percent
Minneapolis: 4.5 percent
Seattle: 3.5 percent
Chicago: 2.5 percent
It's no accident that six of the top cities are in California. The Golden State has set aggressive renewable energy portfolio standards for its three big investor-owned utilities - PG&E (PCG), Southern California Edison (EIX) and San Diego Gas & Electric (SRE). And city-owned utilities like the Sacramento Municipal Utility District have been green-energy pioneers. One city to watch is Austin. The Texas capital's government has committed itself to going carbon neutral by 2020, and its municipal owned utility - Austin Energy, a leader in renewable energy - has been given a mandate to generate 100 megawatts of solar power and make all new plants zero emission.
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