Living in the City is Cleaner and Greener, study says

A recent study conducted by Harvard economist, Edward L. Glaeser, and UCLA’s, Matthew E. Kahn, from the National Bureau of Economic Research looks at how major cities differ with respect to their per-household emissions levels.

The study attempts to quantify the carbon dioxide emissions associated with new construction in different locations across the country. Furthermore, it looks at emissions from driving, public transit, home heating and household electricity usage.

Surprisingly, it finds that the lowest emissions cities are in California and the highest emissions area are in Texas and Oklahoma. There is a negative association between emissions and land use regulations. Overall, cities generally have significantly lower emissions than suburban areas, and the city-suburb gap is large in older areas.