16 Cleanest Countries in the World

Traveling can be very stressful sometimes, but if you choose to travel to one of these cleanest countries in the world, at least you don’t have to worry about catching some nasty disease while you explore new destinations. I’ve traveled to various countries in Europe and Asia as well, and I realized how great is when you find yourself in a clean city with trash bins on every corner. One question which I always ask the locals is whether tap water is safe for drinking. When the answer is yes, it means that if you order a squeezed juice at the restaurant, you don’t have to think are they going to use tap water or not while making it and are you going to catch some bacteria if the water is not drinkable. It also means that you are going to save some money by not buying water every day. On our list of countries with the cleanest tap water, you can see some of the countries where tap water is (more than) safe to drink.

Air pollution is another factor that influences how clean is certain country. Quality of air in one country is affected by a couple of factors such as population density, laws and regulations on air pollution as well as areas covered by forests. Speaking of clean air, we’ve compiled a list of the countries with the cleanest air in the world and it comes as a no surprise that some of the countries from this list will appear on the list of cleanest countries in the world.

Researchers at the Yale Center for Environmental Law & Policy (YCELP) together with their colegues from Columbia University ranked various countries in their Environmental Performance Index Report, according to their performance regarding high-priority environmental issues. They used 25 indicators such as water and air quality and greenhouse gas emissions. It comes as a no surprise that the poorest performing countries (hence dirtiest countries in the world) if you classify it according to the Environmental Performance Index are located in Asia and Africa. The cleanest country in Asia is Japan, which ranks as 39th according to EPI while the cleanest country in Africa is Tunisia, ranked as the 53rd country on the list. As for the title of the “cleanest country in the world 2016” (since those are the latest available data) and to which country it goes you will have to wait a little bit more.

In this article, I’m not going to write about top 100 cleanest countries in the world, not even about top 50 cleanest countries in the world. What I want to discuss here is not quantity, but quality. That’s why only 16 of those cleanest are on this list. How I made it, you are wondering? Well, first I checked Forbes’ article on cleanest countries in the world. However, this article was published in 2010, and I assumed that things changed since then. So, after an extensive search, I managed to find Environmental Performance Index Report, already mentioned above, and to use it for my list. It was my only source of information, because, to my knowledge it is one of the rare sources on that subject that is available online, and has scientific, comprehensive and accurate data. Majority of other reports and lists on this topic do not have the scientific background, or they simply use data based solely on people’s opinions. Researchers at Yale and Columbia covered all in their EPI report, from causes of pollution to factors affecting the “cleanliness” of a certain country. So, countries on this list are ranked according to their EP Index, starting with the one with lowest values. Be ready to be surprised. Honestly I expected that the list of 16 cleanest countries in the world will look a little bit different.

16. Switzerland

EPI score: 86.93

Apparently, cleanliness is considered to be a Swiss trait, so it comes as a no surprise that it is listed among top 16 cleanest countries in the world. Over 9,000 tourists are interviewed about their stay in Switzerland, and all of them agreed that cleanliness is one of the perks of visiting this country. Switzerland’s abundance of beautiful nature secured high-quality, best-tasting drinking water. 80% of drinking water comes from natural springs.

15. Croatia

EPI score: 86.98

With an EPI score of 86.96, Croatia takes 15th place on the list of cleanest countries in the world. By recognizing the importance of tourism, Croatia is trying to keep their beaches neat and clean. European Commission and European Environment Agency collected samples from more than 20,000 coastal locations, and results showed that in Croatia, 94.2% of analyzed areas received the highest mark. That’s why Croatia is the perfect place for a vacation.

14. Singapore

EPI score: 87.04

This city-state has one of the strictest laws which ensure its cleanliness. Anyone accused of dropping litter can be fined up to $1000 for the first conviction. In the case when the person does not learn a lesson, those who are caught again throwing litter around can be fined up to $5,000. In extreme cases, stubborn individuals could be forced to wear a sign that reads: “I am a litter lout.” No wonder this country is among the cleanest countries in the world. If you decide to visit Singapore, better keep the garbage in your pocket if you are too lazy to walk to the nearest trash can.

13. Australia

EPI score: 87.22

An interesting fact about Australia, at least when it comes to the cleanliness, is that its 15 cities are among the cleanest cities in the world (according to the WHO list). Two biggest cities in Australia also have the lowest levels of pollution. This is very interesting since it is expected that the bigger the city, the higher level of pollution will be. When it comes to drinking water, in case of Sydney, most of its drinking water (80%) comes from Lake Burragorang at Warragamba.

12. United Kingdom

EPI score: 87.38

While researching about air pollution in the United Kingdom, we found out that the cleanest air in U.K. is in coastal areas because there, air changes more frequently. Pollutant levels are dependent on topography, which is why cities are the most polluted areas. Tap water in the U.K. is safe for drinking and meets some of the highest standards in the world.

11. New Zealand

EPI score: 88

According to the World Health Organization, New Zealand has some of the safest and cleanest air in the world. Tap water is safe to drink except in exceptional circumstances.

10. France

EPI score: 88.2

France has been actively engaged in improving its air quality and the EPI score of 88.2 shows that these improvements are giving positive results since it is among the top 20 cleanest countries in the world.

9. Malta

EPI score: 88.48

Along with Croatia, Cyprus, and Greece, Malta has some of the cleanest swimming waters in Europe. If Malta is your chosen vacation destination, you don’t have to worry about catching a bug while enjoying your holidays.

8. Estonia

EPI score: 88.59

With an abundance of forests, Estonia is also one of the countries with the cleanest air. Estonian capital, Tallinn, is among the least polluted capitals in the world.

7. Portugal

EPI score: 88.63

Portugal also has some of the cleanest cities in the world with its second biggest city being the cleanest one. Tap water in Portugal is safe to drink, but according to some experiences, it tastes terrible. Of course, you always have a choice of buying bottled water if you don’t like the taste, but in any case, it is entirely safe for drinking.

6. Spain

EPI score: 88.91

Spain has worked very hard to improve its environmental conditions. Spain uses recycled water for irrigation and street cleaning. Renewable energy consumption is very high what pushed Spain in the top 10 cleanest countries in the world.

5. Slovenia

EPI score: 88.98

Motherland of the First Lady, Melania Trump, ranks pretty high on our list of cleanest countries in the world. If you ever pass through Slovenia, you will witness its beautiful, fairytale-like nature. Once you see that, you will understand why Slovenia ranks this high on our list. All of the 48 bathing spots in Slovenia measured quality that is comparable to other  European countries.

4. Denmark

EPI score: 89.21

Some of you might immediately remember Shakespeare’s words:”Something is rotten in the state of Denmark.” When it comes to the environmental situation, nothing is rotten in Denmark. In fact, everything is more than fine since Denmark is another Scandinavian country which is among top 5 cleanest countries in the world. Denmark produces electricity by using wind farms and two years ago, unusually windy day produced 116% of Denmark’s electricity needs. As a result, Denmark exported power to Norway, Germany, and Sweden. This example shows that functioning 100% on renewable energy is possible with proper planning and using country’s natural resources in a smart way. Turning wind into electric power is only one example.

3. Sweden

EPI score: 90.43

I believe that it is enough to say that Sweden’s recycling is so revolutionary that this country has to import trash from other countries. Sweden was also one of the first countries to implement heavy tax on fossil fuels (in 1991) and almost half of its energy comes from renewable sources. Sweden is also recommended as the best country for the green living since various government policies encourage a healthy way of life. When it comes to air pollution, Stockholm is rated as the cleanest capital in the world. I guess that the capital reflects this country’s efforts to reduce pollution as much as possible and rely on environment-friendly energy resources.

2. Iceland

EPI score: 90.51

In 2010, Iceland was named as the cleanest country in the world. One of the most significant assets that people in Iceland have is clear and clean air. This country ranks really high with EPI score of 90.51 meaning that it does not stay so much behind our top-rated cleanest country in the world.

1. Finland

EPI score: 90.68

We’ve finally come to the cleanest country in the world and it is Finland with a very high EPI score of 90.68. Finland is also greenest country in the world because 70% of its area is covered with forest which makes it one of the most forested countries in the world. More than 80% of Finland’s lakes are either good or excellent in quality, and most of its electricity is produced in an environmental-friendly way. However, Finland’s efforts to be utterly environment-friendly country don’t stop here because this country is committed to carbon-neutral society by 2045. This seems like a good plan to stay on top of the list of 16 cleanest countries in the world as well.