Geography Reference
In-Depth Information
Fig. 5.4
Green Index Ranking: Major cities in other continents. (Source: Compiled by author
from Green Index for European Cities, 2012 Siemens AG, Munich, 2012)
grown with uncontrolled sprawl and contain high levels of poverty and pollution,
which have led to the worst sustainability indexes in the world.
Apart from the way the index provides a general summary showing how far
individual cities are behind others in their sustainability, the study can also be used
to isolate their progress on individual indicators. This reveals some fascinating dif-
ferences on particular indicators. For example, Oslo, among the cities studied in
the developed world, emits the lowest amount of carbon dioxide at 2.2 t per capita,
which is far lower than the European average of 5 t, whereas the mean value in the
North America cities is 15 t, a clear indication of the lower density, car use and less
sustainable practices in its major cities. Also the average level of concentration of
other air pollutants (SO2, N02, PM 10) in the European cities is 25 % lower than the
average for Latin American cities, and 50 % lower than the average of Asian cities,
which indicates how far the major cities in countries with medium and low levels of
development world have to go before achieving even European levels of air quality.
The environmental performance of the cities chosen for the Green Index survey
is not simply of descriptive value. It is also useful in a practical sense since it will
