Top 10 Most Polluted Toxic Cities in the US

Who is the Most Toxic of them All?

Just for fun folks. Only because I have friends who grew up in these cities or currently live in them.

Forbes came out with 2011 Most Toxic Cities List.

What would be your first guess for #1?
Los Angeles maybe? Good guess. That is where I grew up and I miss those orange sunsets, sunrises, and… daily sky color… but LA only comes 6th on the list.

Good Ol’ Philadelphia comes in on #1, but California will not be out done as it holds 4 of the top 10 spots with #2 Bakersfield, #3 Fresno, #6 Los Angeles, and #10 Riverside.

The rankings was based on the average of five variables. Air quality, water quality, superfund sites (areas no longer in use that contain hazardous waste), Number of Days with an Air Quality Index (AQI) of 100+ (higher the number the worse the air), and EPA’s Toxics Release Inventory (TRI). The pool was limited to the 80 largest Metropolitan Areas.

Without further delay:

America’s 10 Most Toxic Polluted Cities!

#1 Polluted Philadelphia, Pennsylvania

MSA: Philadelphia-Camden-Wilmington, Pa./N.J./Del./Md.
Number of unhealthy air quality days (2009): 2
Pounds of on-site toxic releases reported (2009): 11.3 million
EWG top water concern: Total trihalomethanes

#2 Befoul Bakersfield, California

Number of unhealthy air quality days (2009): 43
Pounds of on-site toxic releases reported (2009): 2.2 million
EWG top water concern: N/A

#3 Foul Fresno, California

Number of unhealthy air quality days (2009): 26
Pounds of on-site toxic releases reported (2009): 338,000
EWG top water concern: Nitrates

#4 Nasty New York, New York

MSA: New York-Northern New Jersey-Long Island, N.Y./N.J./Pa.
Number of unhealthy air quality days (2009): 5
Pounds of on-site toxic releases reported (2009): 4.1 million
EWG top water concerns: Total haloacetic acids; dieldrin; total trihalomethanes

#5 Bedraggled Baton Rouge, Louisiana

Number of unhealthy air quality days (2009): None
Pounds of on-site toxic releases reported (2009): 33.6 million
EWG top water concern: N/A

#6 Loathsome Los Angeles, California

MSA: Los Angeles-Long Beach-Santa Ana, Calif.
Number of unhealthy air quality days (2009): 14
Pounds of on-site toxic releases reported (2009): 3.8 million
EWG top water concerns: Arsenic; total trihalomethanes; nitrate; total haloacetic acids

#7 Heinous Houston, Texas

MSA: Houston-Sugar Land-Baytown, Texas
Number of unhealthy air quality days (2009): 1
Pounds of on-site toxic releases reported (2009): 54.8 million
EWG top water concern: Alpha particle activity

#8 Sooty St. Louis, Missouri

MSA: St. Louis, Mo./Ill.
Number of unhealthy air quality days (2009): 1
Pounds of on-site toxic releases reported: 22.3 million
EWG top water concern: Total haloacetic acids

#9 Soiled Salt Lake City, Utah

Number of unhealthy air quality days (2009): 15
Pounds of on-site toxic releases reported: 130.4 million
EWG top water concern: Total haloacetic aci

#10 Rancid Riverside / San Bernardino, California

MSA: Riverside-San Bernardino-Ontario, Calif.
Number of unhealthy air quality days (2009): 16
Pounds of on-site toxic releases reported (2009): 1.3 million
EWG top water concerns: Total haloacetic acids; nitrates; perchlorate

Now don’t get all worked up now, I didn’t make up this list – just the adjectives but all in good fun. I grew up in Los Angeles and visited all the other California locations as well as New York and I can say that all.. ok some… of those cities (la, riverside) are beautiful and a great place to live. Bakersfield smells tho…