FREMONT, CA - FEBRUARY 22: Mission Peak is photographed from along a trail at Sabercat Historical Park on Tuesday, Feb. 22, 2022, in Fremont, Calif. City officials plan to extend the two-mile trail within Sabercat Historical Park over Interstate 680 to the west and toward a future Irvington BART station. (Aric Crabb/Bay Area News Group)
Fremont has taken the crown in the Bay Area for the greenest large city, according to a new study.
WalletHub rated 100 of the largest cities in the U.S. in 28 environmentally-conscious categories. Fremont scored 4th overall, but the Bay Area was well-represented in the survey. Oakland ranked 6th overall, San Francisco, 8th, and San Jose, 10th.
The overall top-rated city was San Diego with California taking six out of the top 10 spots in the study. Cities were judged on eco-friendly parameters such as greenhouse-gas emissions per capita, the number of smart-energy policies, and green job opportunities.
Fremont was first among all cities in the environment category which includes Air Quality Index, amount of green space, and water quality.
San Jose ranked first in the energy sources category, which includes share of electricity from renewable energy sources, smart-energy policies and photovoltaic or solar cell installations per capita.
Oakland was tied for first in greenhouse-gas emissions per capita. It shared that spot with Virginia Beach, Jersey City, Reno, Hialeah, Fl. and San Bernardino.
And San Francisco ranked third in the categories of bike score and number of farmers markets per capita.
Here’s the overall top 10 green list:
1. San Diego
2. Portland
3. Honolulu
4. Fremont
5. Washington, DC
6. Oakland
7. Seattle
8. San Francisco
9. Irvine
10. San Jose