City-dwellers in the U.S. have significantly smaller per-capita carbon footprints than their rural counterparts, according to new research from the University of California, Berkeley. But the carbon-intense suburbs surrounding major cities essentially cancel out the small carbon footprints of city residents, the study found.
They are fast becoming the ghost towns of the 21st century, places like the southern California exoburb of Victorville, built around the car and an endless supply of cheap gas for the 50-mile drive to work and the 5-mile drive to the supermarket.
Built (or built up) on the boomtown mentality of cheap energy, unlimited water,