NEWS COPY
The top three greenest cities in the UK are York, Cardiff and Oxford, according to a study.
Researchers looked at the nation’s eco-friendly habits - taking into account a host of factors such as tendency to buy refurbished items, recycling rates, methods of travel – and even time in the shower.
Based on the responses of 2,286 adults on different aspects of sustainability, 27 cities were awarded points which were then tallied up - with the walled city of York achieving the highest overall score.
According to the musicMagpie study [https://musicmagpie.co.uk/
And the northeast city also scored highest for the proportion of those who grow fruit and vegetables at home (72 per cent).
Second place belonged to Cardiff, which is home to the largest proportion of residents who buy or use refurbished technology (72 per cent) and also those who up-cycle old household items (68 per cent).
Close behind was Oxford, which came third, followed by Plymouth in fourth, and Brighton and Newcastle in joint fifth.
However, out of all 27 cities polled, Wolverhampton scored lowest behind Birmingham and Norwich.
Liam Howley, from musicMagpie, said: “We all want to do our bit to help the environment, but some things are easier than others.
“It’s interesting to see certain cities are definitely doing more than others, but at the same time nobody truly reigns supreme.
“There is so much we can each take responsibility for to become more sustainable, and a lot of it is easier than you think.”
The study also found 45 per cent of those polled don’t think they do enough to help the environment by reducing their carbon footprint.
Of those who feel this way, 28 per cent believe they cannot afford to be greener, while 17 per cent feel the area where they live doesn’t do enough to make it easier to be sustainable.
However those polled could turn to Wrexham and Aberdeen for a little inspiration – in two categories at least.
Wrexham has the highest proportion of residents who recycle (83 per cent), with Birmingham at the other end of the scale with just 56 per cent.
The North Wales city also got top marks for flying the least – 1.42 times a year on average - while those in Cardiff fly the most at 3.72 times a year.
However, Wrexham also has the highest proportion of residents who drive petrol or diesel vehicles (75 per cent), with London the lowest with 44 per cent.
While Aberdeen fared the best for using energy-saving light bulbs (98 per cent), Edinburgh and Norwich were joint-worst in this area (84 per cent).
Aberdeen was also top of the tree when it comes to shopping for local produce (98 per cent), while Portsmouth scored lowest (70 per cent).
It also emerged those residing in Southampton spend the shortest amount of time in the shower – an average of seven minutes and seven seconds.
In contrast, those living in Norwich spend the longest period of time in the shower on average – nine minutes and 59 seconds.
Brighton came top for buying fruit and vegetables loose rather than in plastic packaging (48 per cent), while Southampton got the fewest points in this category (29 per cent).
And finally, Portsmouth has the highest proportion of those who give to or buy from charity shops (71 per cent) with Swansea having the lowest (38 per cent).
The musicMagpie study carried out through OnePoll also found half of those polled wish they knew more about how to reduce their carbon footprint further.
But 17 per cent revealed they don’t know what information to trust.
Liam Howley from musicMagpie added: “One simple thing people can do to make a huge difference, is to consider how they are buying and recycling their tech.
“Buying high quality, refurbished tech ensures the product continues its life-cycle when it is still fully functioning.
"It also stops it from contributing to the increasing problem of e-waste, which is piling up in landfills across the world at an astonishing rate and contributing to 70 per cent of the toxic waste caused by landfill.
“Selling back your unused tech to be recycled or refurbished also reduces this problem and can make you some extra cash in the process.”
CITIES RANKED BY SUSTAINABILITY
1. York – 270 points
2. Cardiff – 264 points
3. Oxford – 240.5 points
4. Plymouth – 232.5 points
5. Brighton – 222 points
= Newcastle – 222 points
6. Leicester – 217 points
7. Southampton – 215 points
8. Aberdeen – 209.5 points
9. Portsmouth – 207.5 points
10. Coventry – 206.5 points
11. London – 204 points
12. Edinburgh – 200 points
13. Manchester – 197 points
14. Bristol - 196.5 points
15. Liverpool – 196 points
16. Swansea – 195.5 points
17. Gloucester – 191.5 points
18. Wrexham –191 points
19. Sheffield – 181 points
20. Cambridge – 173.5 points
21. Belfast – 170 points
22. Leeds – 167.5 points
23. Glasgow – 148 points
24. Norwich – 130.5 points
25. Birmingham – 127.5 points
26. Wolverhampton – 116 points
BEST AND WORST IN EACH CATEGORY
PROPORTION OF THOSE BUYING REFURBISHED TECH ITEMS
Highest scorer: Cardiff
Lowest scorer: Aberdeen
PROPORTION OF ZERO-PLASTIC SUPERMARKET SHOPPERS
Highest scorers: Birmingham and York
Lowest scorers: Wolverhampton and Cambridge
PROPORTION OF VEGANS AND VEGETARIANS
Highest scorer: Portsmouth
Lowest scorer: Oxford
PROPORTION OF THOSE GROWING FOOD AT HOME
Highest scorer: York
Lowest scorer: Leeds
PROPORTION OF WHO BUY FRUIT AND VEGETABLES LOOSE
Highest scorer: Brighton
Lowest scorer: Southampton
TIME SPENT SHOWERING
Highest scorer: Southampton
Lowest scorer: Norwich
PROPORTION OF THOSE WASHING CLOTHES AT 30 DEGREES
Highest scorer: Newcastle
Lowest scorer: Wrexham
RECYLING RATES
Highest scorers: Wrexham
Lowest scorer: Birmingham
PROPORTION OF THOSE USING ENERGY SAVING LIGHTBULBS
Highest scorer: Aberdeen
Lowest scorers: Edinburgh and Norwich
PROPORTION OF THOSE BUYING LOCAL PRODUCE
Highest scorer: Aberdeen
Lowest scorer: Portsmouth
PROPORTION OF THOSE DONATING TO AND BUYING FROM CHARITY SHOPS
Highest scorer: Portsmouth
Lowest scorer: Swansea
PROPORTION OF THOSE USING PETROL OR DIESEL VEHICLES
Highest scorer: London
Lowest scorer: Wrexham
FREQUENCY OF PLANE TRAVEL
Highest scorer: Wrexham
Lowest scorer: Cardiff
PROPORTION OF THOSE UPCYCLING
Highest scorer: Cardiff
Lowest scorer: Portsmouth
ENDS
