The American Lung Association, a non-profit organization, releases a State of the Air report each year—an analysis of data from official air quality monitors across the country—to give citizens an idea of how much air pollution affects each city.
The 2017 study, which concentrates on data pulled between 2013 and 2015, lists the six U.S. cities that have the cleanest air in all of America. The following areas (listed in alphabetical order) had "zero high ozone or high particle pollution days, and were among the 25 cities with the lowest year-round particle levels:"
1. Burlington-South Burlington in Vermont
2. Cape Coral-Fort Myers-Naples in Florida
3. Elmira-Corning in New York
4. Honolulu in Hawaii
5. Palm Bay-Melbourne-Titusville in Florida
6. Wilmington in North Carolina
Missing from the ranking is Salinas, in California, which made the list last year. Wilmington, on the other hand, joins the coveted group for the first time ever.
As for the most polluted cities in America, California reigns supreme. Los Angeles takes the (undesirable) top spot on the list, followed by Bakersfield, Fresno-Madera, Visalia-Porterville-Hanford (all in California) and Phoenix/Mesa/Scottsdale, in Arizona.
Take a look at the entire report right here.