Hsu writes U.S. could do more to protect the environment
In a new report that ranks countries by how well they protect the environment, the U.S. comes in at a disappointing 26th place among 180 nations.
The 2016 Environmental Performance Index, compiled by researchers at Columbia and Yale, measures how well countries protect human and ecological health, ranking them biennially from the world's greatest environmental champion to the worst.
In its latest report, the usual suspects topped the list: Finland, Iceland and Sweden, which have warmly embraced environmental protection measures in recent decades. Poorer states, such as Afghanistan and Eritrea, show up at the bottom, with war-torn Somalia bringing up the rear. China, the world's largest producer and consumer of coal, comes in at 109.
As for the U.S., a No. 26 ranking is not bad, but it's also not great for the world's largest economy.
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"While many environmental problems are the result of industrialization, our findings show that both poor and wealthy nations suffer from serious air pollution," Angel Hsu, assistant professor at the Yale School of Forestry & Environmental Studies and lead author of the EPI report, said in a statement.
