The Most Eco-Friendly States: Where Massachusetts Ranks
WalletHub, a personal finance website, released its 2023 “Greenest States” list. They compiled a list ranking all 50 states from the greenest to the least green. The list compared the states across three categories: environmental quality, eco-friendly behaviors, and climate change contributions.
“Eco-friendliness and personal finance are related,” stated the Managing Editor of WalletHub in the report, explaining that every person, through spending choices has an impact on the environment. “We spend money through our own consumption and taxes in support of environmental security.”
The metrics and methodology
Those three categories were evaluated using 25 metrics. For example, the environmental quality dimension includes four of those metrics, such as soil quality. Each of the metrics was weighed on a 100-point scale, with a score of 100 being the highest level of eco-friendliness, according to WalletHub.
Massachusetts ranks in top 10
Massachusetts was ranked seventh in the top 10 rankings. It is worth noting that the state has implemented the Leading by Example Program, which collaborates with state agencies and public educational institutions to promote clean energy and sustainable practices, thereby reducing the environmental impact of state government operations.
The state ranked first for having the highest water quality and third for having the most LEED-Certified Buildings per Capita.
Which state ranked the highest?
In general, most of the top 10 states were located near the coast, with a few exceptions. New York was the highest-ranked Atlantic state, coming in at number 2. Following closely behind were Maryland, Connecticut, Massachusetts, and Maine ranked at numbers 5, 6, 7, and 10.
On the opposite side of the country were the Pacific states of California, which ranked at number 3, and Hawaii, which came in at number 4.
Vermont, the state that topped the list, is located neither on a lake nor an ocean. However, with an impressive overall score of 78.44, it has been deemed the greenest state owing to its high rankings in environmental quality and eco-friendly behaviors. It is known as the Green Mountain State.
Take a look at how all 50 states ranked here.