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again led the way in New England for number of smog days. The next haziest states were Rhode Island with four days, Massachu- setts with three, and Maine and New Hampshire with two each. Connecticut typically has more smog than the rest of New England because it is closer and downwind from other states that produce more smog-causing emissions, such as the traffic in New York and coal- and oil-fueled power plants in Pennsyl- vania, New Jersey and the Midwest. EPA launched an effort this sum- mer to cut down on this downwind pollution. The agency specifically is working with 10 states — New York, New Jersey, Pennsylvania, Maryland, Virginia, West Virginia, Ohio, Michi - gan, Indiana and Illinois — to develop a good neighbor program to lower the threshold of pollution they generate and cut down on the amount of pol - lution they send toward Connecticut. EPA also has proposed lowering the unhealthy day standard below the 0.075 parts per million threshold because its new research has shown that a lower level of ozone still can have unhealthy side effects, said Curt Spalding, regional administrator of EPA's New England office. The EPA is expected to make a final decision on the new threshold in the near future. Despite the struggles with smog this year, Connecticut and New England are improving over the long term. In 1983 — when data first started being tracked — Con- necticut had 103 smog days while New England had 113. Every summer during the 1980s had 41-63 smog days; the 1990s had 29-44 days every summer; and the 2000s got all the way down to six days in 2009. News Cycle Government Grades by Brad Kane Hartford's California Fuel Cell — Officials in Hartford have chosen a fuel cell from Bloom En- ergy in California to power the Capital City's mi- crogrid, even though Connecticut is home to the two largest fuel cell manufacturers in the world. Usually, I am all for government getting the best deal — if this was even that — but it seems for a city project with $2.1 million in state funding that using a Con- necticut supplier would be a no-brainer. Achieving Lofty Goals — The Connecticut Green Bank, led by CEO Bryan Garcia, has set a goal to raise $500 million in private investment for clean energy projects in the state, which is double last year's total. That would appear to be an outrageous expecta- tion, but since the state formed the nation's first organization to leverage public subsidies for pri- vate financing, the Green Bank has impressed with its smart, production-oriented approach. Grade: A Grade: D+ BY THE NUMBERS 6th UConn's rank of the 153 greenest schools in America, because of its large number of sustainability classes. $300 million Value of the portfolio of solar projects and systems that Dominion sold to SunEdison, including a 5-megawatt solar farm in Somers. Sept. 28 Date the Q-bridge in New Haven opened to southbound traffic, eight months ahead of schedule on the central piece of the $2 billion harbor crossing improvement program. 60 miles Portion of the 192-mile Northern Pass transmission line that Eversource Energy plans to build underground, in order to appease New Hampshire residents. 35th Connecticut's rank for best states for motorists, based on the Nutmeg State's high cost of repair, maintenance, insurance and commutes. Idaho ranked 1st, and Louisiana ranked 50th. 689 Residential customer satisfaction score (out of 1,000) for Ambit Energy, making it the most well-regarded electricity supplier operating in Connecticut. SOURCES: SIERRA CLUB, DOMINION, CONNDOT, EVERSOURCE ENERGY, BANKRATE.COM, J.D. POWER & ASSOCIATES 4 CONNECTICUT GREEN GUIDE • WINTER 2015 www.CTGreenGuide.com Emissions from Hartford's Mid-Connecticut Project cause less air pollution then greenhouse gases floating from downwind states. PHOTO | HBJ FILE