Fighting Climate Change Demands Better Urbanism

"High-rise cities like Philadelphia and New York rarely come to mind as models of environmentalism, but they should. With people living closer to each other, walking more and taking advantage of public transit, cities have powerful environmental advantages.

A report prepared for New York Mayor Michael Bloomberg's green blueprint, PlaNYC, revealed that New Yorkers generate, on average, 7.1 metric tons of greenhouse gases a year, two-thirds less the average 24.5 metric tons generated by most Americans.

Of course, not everyone can be - or wants to be - a dweller of New York or Center City Philadelphia. The good news is that a variety of neighborhoods help reduce greenhouse-gas emissions.

...moving from a typical exurban neighborhood with three units per acre to a neighborhood ... where densities are at least 24 to the acre - a household would expect to reduce its driving to about 32 percent what it formerly was."