THE BEST CITIES AND STATES FOR NEW ENERGY

New Clean Tech Index Highlights State and Metro Role

June 4, 2013 (Clean Edge)

“Renewable energy (from wind, solar, geothermal, biomass, and other sources) accounted for 49 percent of the nation’s added electricity capacity in 2012 – its largest share ever and more than the 33 percent share of new generation capacity from natural gas (according to the 2013 Clean Tech Leadership Index from Clean Edge]…

“This year’s Index shows that leadership in clean tech at the state and metro levels is inextricably linked. Half of this year’s top 10 metro areas are located in California – the State Index leader for the past four years. Four other metro areas are located in the top 10 states of Massachusetts, Oregon, Colorado, and Washington. The only exception among the top 10 metro areas is America’s unique “city without a state,” the nation’s capital of Washington, D.C., which ranks fifth in our 2013 Metro Index.”

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“The State Index is comprised of nearly 70 indicators contained in the three major categories of Technology, Policy, and Capital. The Metro Index includes more than 20 indicators within the categories of Green Buildings, Advanced Transportation, Clean Electricity & Carbon Management, and Clean Tech Investment, Innovation, & Workforce…

“[In Clean Electricity, #1 California is unique in having wide-scale deployment of all three leading renewable-energy power sources (wind, solar, and geothermal). In 2012, California became the first state to install more than a gigawatt of new solar PV in one year, and was second in the U.S. in new wind energy deployment with 1.65 GW…But California is just fifth in the U.S. in percentage of generation from wind, solar, and geothermal, trailing four states from the far less populous, wind power-driven Upper Midwest: Iowa, South Dakota, North Dakota, and Minnesota…”

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