Wyoming Remains as One of the Least ‘Green’ States in America
Earth Day is coming up this Friday, April 22nd. It only seems appropriate that we take a look at what the greenest states are in the country. Spoiler alert: Wyoming is definitely not one of them.
According to ERA, being 'green' means to:
...continually improve upon the manner that resources are utilized that results in reduced impacts to human health and the environment and is done without sacrificing the current and future needs of our world.
With Earth Day approaching and such a topic being near the top of mind, our friends at WalletHub recently ranked each state in terms of how 'green' they are. Some of the broader categories used to determine each states ranking included things like 'environmental quality', 'eco-friendly behaviors', and 'climate change contributions'.
Some of the greenest states in the country include California, Maryland, Hawaii, New York, and Vermont, which finished as the greenest state overall. Our neighbors to the south in Colorado finished 12th on the list as it seems they are doing their part to help preserve the world for future generations when it comes to the environment. Colorado even finished 7th in eco-friendly behaviors. They also have the most LEED Certified Buildings per Capita, which means they have the most healthy, highly efficient, and cost-saving green buildings.
However, Wyoming finished near the bottom of the list as the 7th LEAST green state in the country. That comes even after finishing with the highest air quality of any other state. The Cowboy State was 42nd in eco-friendly behaviors and 46th in climate-change contributions. In smaller categories that were determining factors, Wyoming was also 48th in soil quality, tied for last in energy consumption per capita, and 46th in gas consumption per capita.
Despite the bad rankings for the state, Cheyenne happened to be last year's 'Greenest City in Wyoming'. However, given the national ranking for the state, that doesn't seem like that's saying all that much.
All that means is that there is plenty of room for improvement in Wyoming to climb our way up and be a 'greener' state. We have had a history of finishing towards the bottom of the list in several years recently, but that doesn't mean we have to be there forever. Enjoy Earth Day this week, Wyoming!
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