Governor Matt Bevin last week proclaimed Friday, April 22, as Earth Day in Kentucky. Each year, Kentucky celebrates Earth Day to increase awareness of the importance of conservation, stewardship and protection of our natural environment.
State officials gathered at the Thomas D. Clark Center in downtown Frankfort Thursday to kick-off the 2016 Earth Day Celebration. The celebration included recognition of Kentucky’s newest Green Ribbon Schools and the Green and Healthy Schools and the presentation of Earth Day Awards by the Environmental Quality Commission. A number of state agencies set up booths at the Earth Day kick-off event to educate state employees and the public about how to better environmental stewards.
So how does Kentucky fare as a “Green State”? The personal finance website WalletHub has released its report on 2016’s Greenest States and says the study ranks Kentucky as the 8th least green state in 2016.
A release says WalletHub’s analysts compared the 50 states in terms of 17 key metrics that speak to the health of the current environment as well as the environmental impact of people’s daily habits. Their data set ranges from “Total Municipal Solid Waste per Capita” to “Energy Efficiency Score” to “Carbon Dioxide Emissions per Capita.”
Here is the break-down of Kentucky’s rankings:
44th – Air Quality
18th – Soil Quality
37th – Water Quality
45th – Number of LEED-Certified Buildings per Capita
42nd – Percent of Energy Consumption from Renewable Sources
28th – Energy-Efficiency Score
35th – Gasoline Consumption per Capita
41st – Percentage of Population Not Driving to Work
45th – Carbon Dioxide Emissions per Capita