Survey ranks Honolulu as greenest city

Honolulu lowest in carbon emissions

STORY SUMMARY »

Honolulu generates the least amount of carbon dioxide pollution among 100 top U.S. metropolitan areas, according to estimates released today by the Brookings Institution.

The report, prepared by researchers at Georgia Tech, is based on rough 2005 estimates of carbon emissions from transportation and buildings but does not include commercial buildings, industry, aircraft, or gas burned while vehicles are stuck in traffic.

But it suggests that dense areas like Los Angeles and New York fare well because of their heavier reliance on mass transit. Eastern cities fared worse because of their reliance on coal, and unfavorable weather, which uses up more electricity.

---

FULL STORY »

Honolulu residents are the greenest in the nation, registering the lowest per-capita carbon footprint out of 100 cities surveyed in a research report released today.

Where Hawaii stands Per-capita carbon emissions from transportation in 2005: 1. New York City and suburbs: 0.825 metric tons 2. Honolulu: 0.847 metric tons 3. Rochester, N.Y.: 0.95 metric tons 100. Bakersfield, Calif.: 2.189 metric tons Per-capita carbon emissions from residential energy use in 2005: 1. Bakersfield, Calif.: 0.35 metric tons 2. Seattle-Tacoma-Bellevue, Wash.: 0.356 metric tons 3. San Diego-Carlsbad-San Marcos, Calif.: 0.36 metric tons 15. Honolulu: 0.509 metric tons 100. Washington, D.C., and suburbs: 1.958 On the net » Carbon footprint report: www.brookings.edu/metro/CarbonFootprint.aspx » Click here to view full listing

Honolulu was responsible for about 1.36 metric tons of carbon emissions per person in 2005, according to the report by the Brookings Institution, a Washington, D.C.-based think tank. Lexington, Ky., had the biggest per-capita footprint at about 3.5 metric tons.

"The average resident in Lexington emitted two and a half times more carbon from transport and homes in 2005 than the average resident in Honolulu," the report stated.

The 100 cities accounted for about 56 percent of U.S. carbon dioxide pollution, but reliance on mass transit and population density reduced the per-person average.

"For example, many metro areas with small carbon footprints, such as New York, San Francisco, San Diego and Los Angeles, have a sizable rail transit ridership and are densely built, while low-density metros like Nashville and Oklahoma City are prominent in the 10 largest per capita emitters," the report said.

Emissions in the eastern United States are higher because people rely heavily on coal for electricity. Researchers said western cities had fewer emissions because weather is more favorable and electricity and motor fuel prices are higher.

"It was a surprise, the extent to which emissions per capita are lower," Marilyn Brown, a professor of energy policy at the Georgia Institute of Technology and co-author of the report, said in an interview.

Honolulu also ranked second in the lowest amount of highway-related emissions. Honolulu emitted about 0.85 metric tons per capita in 2005. New York ranked first with 0.83 tons.

Honolulu ranked 15th in per-capita emissions from residential energy use. Each person was responsible for about 0.51 tons of emissions, as opposed to No. 1-ranked Bakersfield, Calif., where total emissions were 0.35 tons.

The researchers admit their numbers are rough. For instance, the estimates do not account for gasoline burned while vehicles are stuck in traffic jams.

The researchers estimated the partial carbon footprint of each city area by looking at national databases for passenger and freight transportation and for energy consumption in residential buildings. They left out carbon emissions from commercial buildings, industry, aircraft and transit systems, which they concede account for roughly half of emissions nationally.

Carbon dioxide is released from burning fossil fuels and is the most prevalent greenhouse gas, trapping heat in the atmosphere. About 6.6 billion tons of carbon dioxide is released into air annually in the United States.

From 2000 to 2005, carbon dioxide from transportation, electricity use and residential heating in the largest metropolitan areas increased 7.5 percent. For the entire nation it rose 9.1 percent. The average per-capita footprint in those 100 cities rose at an annual rate of 1.1 percent a year, half the average yearly increase of 2.2 percent nationwide.

Half of the dozen cities with the stingiest carbon output were in California, where electricity and motor fuel prices are high. Also cited was the Seattle-Portland, Ore., region, which relies heavily on hydropower.

Cities in Kentucky, Ohio and Indiana dominated the worst tier of carbon emitters.

These urban areas are "kind of a poster child of what high carbon-intensive growth looks like," Brown said. She noted their reliance on coal for electricity, natural gas for heating, a shortage of mass transit and often older, energy-inefficient buildings.