Big, Fat, Green City

By Joanna Miller in News on Jun 1, 2006 8:43PM

OK, so maybe Chicago is the fattest city, but we’re also at the top of the list of “sustainable” cities. Which means we can continue to stuff our faces with deep-dish pizza and combo sandwiches long into the future, until we have a heart attack. Or something like that.

Actually, it mean’s the city “minimizes its long-term impact on the environment while maximizing the quality of life for its residents,” according to SustainLane.com, the site that ranked the 50 largest U.S. cities based on a variety of factors. Overall, Chicago was No. 8 last year and moved up to No. 5 in the latest rankings.

We’re first in the “knowledge base” category, which looks at sustainability plans and nongovernmental partnerships, and second in regional public transportation. Chicago’s “very ambitious,” energy plan to meet 20 percent of power needs with renewable sources earned us fifth place in the energy category, despite having only achieved 2.5 percent to date.

But air quality? Not so great. We’re in 45th place. Out of 50. It seems our heads and hearts are in the right place, but our lungs aren’t. Not yet anyway.

If you’ve been thinking about installing that green roof, now may be the time. The Chicago Center for Green Technology plans to install living green roof display in its lobby at 445 North Sacramento. The green roof display will be accessible to visitors year-round and will feature two types of green roof and dozens of live plants.

Urban Transplant via philipyk