One of the oldest cities in the world, London is doing its part to be eco-friendly. That is why we choose it for our Pick of the Week. London has many environmental initiatives that make us Yanks a green with envy.

First, London is one of the greenest cities in the world– literally. Two-thirds of the city is covered in water or green space, including homes to a variety of animals and plants. The city includes the following wild habitats: ancient woodlands, chalk grasslands, parkland, rivers & streams, and wastelands.

Also, on London’s official website. They list ways for the everyday Red Coat to make a difference in London’s environment. Click here to see their list of ways to help the environment.

And London doesn’t just talk the talk, they walk the walk. On June 1st, the entire city went dark for Lights Out London. For one hour (9 pm-10 pm), an estimated 2 million light bulbs went out around the capital, saving roughly 750 MWh of electricity– enough to run 3,000 televisions for a year. Pictured here is the iconic Big Ben clock tower and the Houses of Parliament in their dark glory.

On top of programs such as this, London now testing hybrid buses on routes in Central London, they introduced a plan for “Low Emission Zones,” and the buses have routine emissions checks to ensure they are within standards. Plus London has one of the best public transportation systems around. With easy and convenient ways to get around without a car, London definitely has parts of America topped.

So to London we say, “Cheers Mates!”

This entry was posted on Friday, August 17th, 2007 at 8:37 am and is filed under Good Earth, KIWI's Pick of the Week, Travel. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.