According to a ranking produced by Grist, an environmental news magazine, Cleveland is the best-suited U.S. city to stand up to climate change. Writer Jeff Opperman compiled his list based on readily available information, such as risk for climate-related disasters, water-supply disruption, and heat-stress rankings.

The top five cities that are most resilient and least vulnerable to climate change are Cleveland, Milwaukee, Detroit, Chicago, and Minneapolis.

"Why do Rust Belt cities do so well in my rankings?" asks Opperman. "Because they have a sustainable water supply (in four of the cities, the Great Lakes); their heat stress rankings are relatively low; and they are less vulnerable to natural disasters that will be exacerbated by climate change, such as floods, landslides, and wildfires."

Looking at the bottom five -- Phoenix, Houston, Sacramento, Las Vegas, and Miami -- Opperman states:

"One obvious observation is that the most climate-vulnerable cities include some of the fastest growing regions of the country, while the most climate-resilient include several cities with flat or even declining populations. So the country's population is shifting away from places that are better-equipped to deal with climate change and toward areas that may face the greatest disruptions from climate change. Many of the most resilient cities are former industrial giants in need of new economic drivers. Transforming our economy to one that runs on much cleaner energy will require significant expansion of "green industries" with associated job growth. So, despite the relatively lower vulnerability of the Clevelands and Milwaukees and Detroits of the world, these cities should still pursue the investments required to prevent climate change. Those investments could provide an important spark for economic revitalization."

Read the rest here.