How did Idaho earn the title of the least wasteful state in the country.? Its residents throw away the least amount of garbage each year. This is based on how much landfill waste is present in each state in relation to the population. Idaho, North Dakota, and Connecticut were the clear winners, while Pennsylvania, Colorado, and California came in last. “Idaho residents have less than ten tons of landfill waste per person—putting them way ahead of Californians, who average 35 tons of landfill garbage per person,” says Zippia’s marketing manager, Kathy Morris. “Idaho residents also deal with less landfill gas than all but a handful of states.”
According to Zippia’s report, the average American throws away 4.4 pounds of trash each day. That adds up to 728,000 tons of daily garbage from the United States alone. Thankfully, states like Idaho are implementing innovative changes that others can follow. Here’s what they’re doing.
Cleaner Energy Sources
Idaho was an early adopter of green energy sources like wind and geothermal power. Now, it has a thriving wind-power industry and is one of only six states with commercial geothermal electricity. Geothermal power plants are able to create energy using water and heat that comes from dry steam wells or from hot-water wells. The steam then powers a turbine that generates electricity.
Because Idaho has never had a large supply of fossil fuels to rely on, leaders had to become more creative with their power sources. “Idaho has plentiful rivers for hydroelectric power,” says Morris. “Similarly, Idaho has some of the best geothermal potentials in the country.” And because Idaho is not as densely populated as most other states, it’s able to take advantage of the space for wind-power sources.