SustainLane 2006 US City Sustainability Ranking

Methodology

Sustainability approaches tend to address combined environmental, economic, and social issues, while environmental management approaches tend to focus on issues like pollution or habitat restoration in isolation. The beginning of the 21st century represents a turning point for cities as sustainability subsumes environmental management practices and polices. SustainLane believes sustainability is a more appropriate approach for urban areas because it recognizes people and institutions as the primary actors that benefit from change, with indirect benefits also accruing for natural systems as a result.

The SustainLane website gives people the resources they need in order to make choices that can make their lives healthier and more sustainable in terms of their home, community, and the environment in general.

Neither world politics nor global oil supplies are expected to be stable until the end of the decade or beyond. And the carbon emission-created global warming of the Atlantic's water temperatures is influencing more stronger-than-average hurricane seasons. So the term 'sustainability,' officially defined as meeting the needs of the present generation so it doesn't compromise the quality of life for future generations, has taken on new urgency.

Methodology

The 2006 SustainLane US City Rankings were developed using a combination of primary and secondary research directed by SustainLane. Fifty US Cities were included in the study. Data and information are drawn from surveys and interviews from 2005-2006, and publicly available sources published in the period between 2002-2006.

Overall Rankings

Overall rankings were determined by averaging 15 individual category rankings, each of which was given a weighting of 0.5, 1, or 1.5 (see below for details). Cumulative averages ranged from 85.08 out of 100 for the highest-scoring city (Portland, Oregon) to 32.50 out of 100 for the lowest-scoring city (Columbus, Ohio).

Criteria for Selecting Cities for the Study

The largest 50 US cities by population (based on 2004 US Census data) were selected as the universe for the study. Data was collected on a city basis except for four categories, due to availability. Regional public transit ridership, roadway congestion, and metro area sprawl (a subcomponent of the planning category) data was collected on a metropolitan area basis. Air quality data was gathered on a countywide basis.

How Data or Information Categories Were Chosen

There are two criteria for how data was selected:

a.) Data or information sets that would be of relatively equal importance to cities across the United States. For example, water conservation programs were not included because they would be much more important for a desert city in the Southwest than for a city with a plentiful water supply.

b.) Ease of standardized collection. Air quality data, for instance, is available in a standardized format freely available (Median Air Quality Index) from the US EPA.

2006 Data Collection and Research Methods

Primary research consisted of e-mail and phone surveys administered to the 50 subject cities during the period between December 2005 and April 2006. City subjects included environmental or sustainability departments, energy offices, departments of solid waste, water departments, mayor's offices, and planning departments. Non-Governmental Organizations (NGOs) working directly with subject cities were also surveyed or interviewed. A total of 37 cities responded to the survey. For the cities that did not respond to the survey, rankings were determined by data from public and non-governmental data sources.

Data was adjusted on a per capita basis for local food and agriculture (farmers markets and community gardens), as well as for green (LEED) buildings.

In total, over 100 respondents were surveyed by e-mail or telephone, or interviewed in person. A list of these people and their city or organizational affiliations is included at the end of this methodology.

Weighting of Data

Of the 15 data categories, 11 received a weighting of 1. The remaining four categories were weighted as follows:

Commute to work: 1.5

Weighting was assigned a higher value than all other categories because of the numerous direct and indirect impacts on numerous other categories, including air quality, water quality from surface run-off, greenhouse gas emissions contributing to global climate change, road congestion, economic efficiency (expenditures for gas leave the local economy; roadway congestion damages personal and local productivity; air pollution can have numerous health-related economic impacts).

Congestion: 0.5

Weighting was assigned a lower value based on secondary nature of impacts (less fuel efficiency, less public transportation efficiency).

Affordability: 0.5

Weighting was assigned a lower value based on secondary impacts'higher housing prices hurt the environment because they force more residents or service workers to commute.

Natural disaster risk: 0.5

Weighting was assigned a lower value because information modeled reflects natural disaster risk only, which depends on climatic probability, insurance information based on past history, etc.

Public Data Sources

Public data from the most current sources were combined in each category to provide ranking metric by issue, listed in italics.

Commute to Work

2004 US Census/American Fact Finder commute-to-work information (released in 2004): Public transportation ridership percentage, walk to work percentage, bike to work percentage; carpool to work percentage, drive alone to work percentage.

Regional Transportation

Data from 2003 Texas Mobility Study analyzing regional general public transit ridership.

Congestion

Data from 2003 Texas National Mobility Study analyzing regional freeway and surface road congestion by metro region.

Air Quality
US EPA air quality data and information from Fall 2005 (Median Air Quality Index, combined with US EPA Clean Air Act Non-Attainment information, converted to a numerical scale).

NGO and Public information

NGO and public data sources were combined in each category to provide ranking metric by issue, listed in italics.

Tap Water Quality
Environmental Working Group's December 2005 US city drinking water database.

LEED Building
Number of US Green Building Council's Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design (LEED) certified and registered buildings from US Green Building Council, adjusted per capita. A greater weighting was given to data for LEED Certified (over LEED Registered) and for LEED Platinum or LEED Gold buildings (versus LEED Silver or LEED Certified).

Local Food & Agriculture
Number of farmers markets per city, and number of farmers markets, with additional credit given to those farmers markets accepting WIC and Food Stamps. This data came from both NGOs and the US Department of Agriculture, as well as from cities themselves. Cities and/or NGOs provided the number of community gardens per city. Farmers markets were weighted by the number of each city's markets accepting food stamps and WIC credits.

Planning/Land Use
Urban sprawl data from Smart Growth America's December 2002 study.
Percent of city land area devoted to parks came from Trust for Public Land (2002 study) and from 2006 SustainLane primary research.

Housing Affordability
Measure of median housing ranking; median income was also analyzed as a mitigating affordability factor. Cities with Living Wage ordinances were given extra credit.

Natural Disaster Risk
Data from Risk Management Solutions' 1999 'Catastrophic Risk in the United States' and SustainLane primary research: cumulative measure of hurricane risk, flood risk, tornado super outbreaks, earthquake risk, and devastating hail risk.
Green Economy

Whether the city has a clean technology incubator; whether it has a city or private green business directory; and the average of farmers markets per capita and LEED buildings per capita data.

Exclusive Primary Research Categories

Energy
SustainLane primary research on greenhouse gas reduction tracking, goals and inventories, overall renewable energy use percentage for a city, and alternative fuel fleet data (credit given for cities with 12% or more of fleet comprised of alternative fuel-using vehicles).

City Innovation
SustainLane primary research on Environmentally Preferable Purchasing programs, commercial and residential green building incentives, carpooling coordination, car sharing programs (public or private), and extra credit city innovation (general category).

Knowledgebase/Communications
SustainLane primary research on whether cities have a sustainability plan; department to manage environmental/sustainability functions; research partnerships with federal laboratories and/or non-governmental organizations. These management functions and collaborations are critical to ensuring long-lasting sustainability program metrics and success.

City and Other Resources for Primary Research

Albuquerque, New Mexico
Martin Chavez, Mayor
Alfredo Santistevan, Environmental Health Department
Mary Lou Leonard, Environmental Health Department
John O'Connell, Environmental Health Department
Deborah Nason, Outreach Specialist

Arlington, Texas
Robert Cluck, Mayor
Robert Ressl, Environmental Services

Baltimore, Maryland
George L. Winfield, Department of Public Works
Stuart Duncan, Department of Public Works

Boston, Massachusetts
Bryan Glascock, Department of the Environment

Charlotte, North Carolina
Pat McCrory, Mayor
Cary Saul, Director, Land Use and Environmental Services

Chicago, Illinois
Sadhu Johnston, Department of the Environment
Sarah Beazley, Natural Resources and Water Quality

Colorado Springs, Colorado
William Healy, Department of Planning and Community Development

Dallas, Texas
Karen Rayzer, Director, Environmental Department
Laura Fiffick, Office of Environmental Quality

Denver, Colorado
John Hickenlooper, Mayor
Peter Park, Director of Planning
Beth Conover, Sustainability Director
Lydia Riegle, Mayor's Office

Detroit, Michigan
Vincent Nathan, Environmental Affairs Department

El Paso, Texas
Daphne Richards, County Extension Agent-Horticulture Texas Cooperative Extension

Fresno, California
Terri Saldivar, Public Affairs Office
Christie Kelly, Administration Division
Ken Nerland, Administration Division

Honolulu CDP, Hawaii
Eric Takamura, Director, Environmental Services|
Tim Houghton, Department of Environmental Services

Houston, Texas
Karl Pepple, Environmental Programming

Indianapolis, Indiana
Bart Peterson, Mayor
April Sellers, Deputy Chief of Staff
Sarah Besser, Purdue Extension Urban Gardens

Kansas City, Missouri
Kay W. Barnes, Mayor
Bryan Gadow, Office of the City Manager

Las Vegas, Nevada
Tom Perrigo, Department of Planning and Development

Long Beach, California
Beverly O'Neill, Mayor
Suzanne Frick, Director of Planning and Building
Larry Rich, Department of Planning and Building
Kerry Rasmussen, Environmental Services Bureau
John Seevers, Department of Public Works
Chris Garner, Long Beach Gas and Oil
Mike Conway, Department of Community Development

Los Angeles, California
Karin Christie, Environmental Director
Keylaundra McClelland, Environmental Affairs Department

Louisville-Jefferson County, Kentucky
Jerry Abramson, Mayor
Joan Riehm, Deputy Mayor
Cass Harris, Office of the Mayor
Donna Browne, Jefferson County Cooperative Extension
Jason Cissell, Public Information Officer, Metro Parks

Memphis, Tennessee
Jacob Flowers, Midsouth Peace Justice Center

Milwaukee, Wisconsin
Jeffrey Mantes, Department of Public Works
Rhonda Kelsey, Green Team Liaison

Minneapolis, Minnesota
Lori Olson, Environmental Management and Safety

New Orleans, Louisiana
Wynecta Fisher, Environmental Affairs

New York, New York
Michael R. Bloomberg, Mayor
Robert Kulikowski, Environmental Coordination Office
Lys McLaughlin, Former Executive Director, New York Council on the Environment

Oakland, California
Randy Hayes, Former Director, Mayor's Office of Sustainability
Carol Misseldine, Director, Mayor's Office of Sustainability
Scott Wentworth, Mayor's Office of Sustainability
Brooke A. Levin, Mayor's Office of Sustainability
Jonelyn Weed, Mayor's Office of Sustainability
Serena Unger, Univ. of California at Berkeley
Heather Wooten, Univ. of California at Berkeley

Oklahoma City, Oklahoma
Mick Cornett, Mayor
Kim Cooper, Planning
Mike McClure

Philadelphia, Pennsylvania
John Haak, City Planning Commission
David Adler, The Food Trust
Eileen Gallagher, Philadelphia Horticultural Society
Terry Mushovic, Neighborhood Gardens Association/A Philadelphia Land Trust
Robert Allen, Deputy Managing Director
Leanne T. Krueger-Braneky, Sustainable Business Network of Greater Philadelphia
John Hadalski, Management Services

Phoenix, Arizona
Phil Gordon, Mayor
Karen O'Regan, Environmental Programs
Lucy Bradley, Phoenix Cooperative Extension
Cindy Gentry, Community Food Connections

Portland, Oregon
Tom Potter, Mayor
Matt Emlen, Office of Sustainable Development
Stephanie Swanson, Communications

Sacramento, California
Heather Fargo, Mayor
Sue O'Brien, Chief of Staff
Lezley Buford, Environmental Planning Services

San Antonio, Texas
Dan Cardenas, Environmental Services
David Newman, Environmental Manager

San Diego, California
Linda Pratt, Office of Environmental Protection and Sustainability

San Francisco, California
Gavin Newsom, Mayor
David Assmann, Office of Sustainability

San Jose, California
Michael Foster, Green Building Program
John Stufflebean, Environmental Services Department

Seattle, Washington
Greg Nickels, Mayor
Steve Nicholas, Office of Sustainability and Environment
Mark Brady, Puget Sound Clean Cities Coalition

Tucson, Arizona
Robert Walkup, Mayor
Leslie Liberti, Environmental Services
David Modeer, Tucson Water Director

Tulsa, Oklahoma
Clayton Edwards, Environmental Operations
Washington, D.C
Elizabeth Berry, Acting Director, Department of Environment

Other Resources
Scot Case, Former Director of Procurement Strategies, Center for New American Dream
Panama Bartholomy, CalEPA
Teresa Parsley, Assistant Secretary, CalEPA
Drew Bohan, former Deputy Secretary, Governor's Office, California/CalEPA
Dan Burgoyne, State of California
Josh Hart, Former Program Director, San Francisco Bicycle Coalition
Diana Donlon, Independent Consultant, Food Systems
Daniel Imhoff, Author
Eileen Brady, Former VP, Ecotrust
Peter Harnik, Director, Center for Park Excellence, Trust for Public Land