1. DWINDLING OPEN SPACE, HABITATS
Indiana’s 4 percent of publicly owned land is among the lowest in the country. He includes opposition to the I-69 expansion in this category, not because he’s against roads but because of what he says is the potential to destroy 2,000 acres of forest.
2. TOXIC EMISSIONS
Indiana is third in the nation in toxic emissions, including coal ash and mercury, according to EPA data for 2007.
3. CARBON FOOTPRINT
Kharbanda rejects the idea of “clean coal” technology, calling it cleaner coal, and says the costs are “dramatically understated.” He thinks priority should go to alternative energy sources, such as wind and solar.

THE RATINGS
Here are the sources of the ratings listed in the graphic on Page 1.

INDIANAPOLIS:
» 99th out of 100 metropolitan areas in per capita carbon emissions from transportation and residential energy use – Brookings Institution, 2008.
» 53rd out of 72 cities in environmental sustainability
- Earth Day Network’s Urban Environment Report, 2007.
» Fifth-largest amount of total fines levied nationally from 2003 to 2008 for violations of the Federal Clean Water Act (Belmont Wastewater Treatment Plant) – U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, 2008.
» 44th overall out of 50 cities in reducing the “impacts of fossil fuel” – SustainLane.com, 2008.

» MARION COUNTY:
» 568th out of 592 counties in a key air-quality measurement: short-term particle pollution (Lake County ranked 548th) – American Lung Association’s State of the Air report, 2008.

» INDIANA:
» 49th out of 50 states in overall green rankings – Forbes.com, 2007.

» Highest amount of toxic discharges to bodies of water among all states, more than 11 percent of nation’s total – EPA, 2007.
» Last in the nation in garbage (municipal solid waste) production per capita at 2.15 tons of waste per person – BioCycle, a composting and recycling publication, 2008.
» 3.7 million Hoosiers exposed to tap water that included contaminants above acceptable health and safety limits – National Tap Water Quality Database, 2005.

EARTH DAY EVENTS
Today
Earth Day celebration
When: 11:30 a.m. to 1:30 p.m.
Where: City Market, West Plaza (on the mezzanine inside if the weather is bad).
Details: Displays by environmental groups and information on environmentally friendly products.

Saturday
Earth Day Indiana
When: 11 a.m. to 4 p.m.
Where: American Legion Mall, Downtown Indianapolis.
Details: Free. Scores of exhibits, hands-on activities, music, fun stuff for kids and food. Web site: www.earthdayindiana.org.

For more Earth Day events:
http://green.indy.com/groups/Gre...
To submit your own Green event:
http://green.indy.com/user_event...