Vermont tops Forbes' green list; Minnesota is 15th

Updated: October 22, 2007 - 9:30 PM

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Vermont is first on Forbes magazine's "America's Greenest States" list, which was released Monday. No surprise there. But New Jersey No. 7 out of 50?

As for Minnesota, the "above average" state kept to its reputation and is ranked 15th, the best of any state in the Upper Midwest. Wisconsin is 16th, South Dakota 21st, Iowa 35th and North Dakota 42nd.

The rankings hardly consider West Virginia almost heaven (as John Denver sang in "Take Me Home, Country Roads.") Forbes rates the state dead last.

Forbes ranked each state in six equally weighted categories: carbon footprint, air quality, water quality, hazardous-waste management, policy initiatives and energy consumption.

Minnesota scored below the middle of the pack when it came to carbon footprint, the magazine said. It got good marks for its energy efficiency and for its relatively clean water and air.

PAUL WALSH