A report has found Australian cities lagging behind global urban centres as diverse as London and Hong Kong in the sustainability stakes.
Commissioned by global design and engineering consultancy Arcadis, the inaugural Sustainable Cities Index ranks 50 of the world’s most prominent cities on the basis of their sustainability. European cities scored best with seven making up the top ten, headed by Frankfurt (Germany), followed by London (UK), Copenhagen (Denmark), Amsterdam and Rotterdam (both in The Netherlands).
The remaining three spots in the top ten were made up of Asian cities: Seoul (South Korea), Hong Kong (China) and Singapore were ranked 7th, 8th and 10th respectively. Australian cities were not far behind, Sydney narrowly missed out on a top ten ranking in 11th place, while Melbourne trailed behind in 17th.
The cities were assessed on social (People), environmental (Planet) and economic (Profit) factors to determine an overall ranking, with data compiled from a range of data sources including the United Nations, the World Bank, the World Health Organisation, the International Labor Organisation and many others.
The People factor takes into consideration transport infrastructure, health, education, income inequality, work-life balance, the dependancy ration, green spaces within cities and quality of life. The Planet factor rates energy consumption, renewable energy share, recycling rates, greenhouse gas emissions, risk of natural catastrophes, quality of drinking water, sanitation and air pollution. Profit, meanwhile, combines measures of transport infrastructure, ease of doing business, city’s importance in global economic networks, property and living costs, GDP per capita and energy efficiency.
Sustainable Cities Index: Overall ranking.
Image: Arcadis
Both Australian cities scored well on the People sub-index, with Sydney in 4th place (thanks to its green spaces), and Melbourne in 8th.
Sustainable Cities Index: People ranking.
Image: Arcadis
In the Profit sub-index, Melbourne came in 5th due to its transport infrastructure and ease of doing business. Sydney was ranked 16th. Regionally, Hong Kong, Seoul and Singapore also made the top ten.
Sustainable Cities Index: Profit ranking.
Image: Arcadis
In the Planet sub-index, both Australian cities have room for improvement. Sydney ranked 18th and Melbourne 23rd due to their poor energy use and renewables mix. The Australian cities bookended a cluster of high polluting cities including Hong Kong (China), New York, Boston and Washington (all USA). In fact, the report deemed poor environmental performance in American cities was the reason none of them ranked in the top ten overall.
Sustainable Cities Index: Planet ranking
Image: Arcadis
The report highlights the delicate balancing act of that all cities around the world must face in order to achieve true sustainability. Trade-offs between environmental sustainability and social sustainability are seen most starkly in Middle Eastern countries, while in the developed world, the price for high economic sustainable is paid for through poor housing affordability and a high cost of living. Arcadis says the report is not intended as a scorecard but rather to highlight the opportunities to improve cities’ various infrastructures.
For the full report and list of rankings, click here.
