Map: Where Are America’s Largest Landfills?

Published

39 seconds ago

on

May 26, 2024 Graphics/Design:

See this visualization first on the Voronoi app.

Map: Where Are America’s Largest Landfills?

This was originally posted on our Voronoi app. Download the app for free on Apple or Android and discover incredible data-driven charts from a variety of trusted sources.

We map out America’s largest landfills, based on their total capacity (measured in millions of tons) for solid waste. Data for this graphic is sourced from Statista and is current up to 2023.

According to the EPA, the U.S. produced 292 million tons of solid waste in 2018. Of that, about 150 million tons headed to the country’s landfills. It would take more than 600 of the largest cargo ships (by dead weight tonnage) to move this much material at once.

Ranked: America’s Largest Landfills

Opened in 1993 and located 25 minutes from Las Vegas, Apex Landfill is believed to be one of the world’s largest landfills by both area and volume.

It spans 1,900 acres, or roughly the size of 1,400 football fields. Given its vast capacity, the landfill is expected to be able to accept waste for over 250 years.

Here are the top 10 largest landfills in the country.

RankU.S. LandfillStateCapacity (Million Tons) 1Apex RegionalNevada995 2ECDC EnvironmentalUtah482 3Denver Arapahoe Disposal SiteColorado396 4Columbia RidgeOregon393 5Lockwood RegionalNevada346 6OkeechobeeFlorida242 7Butterfield StationArizona226 8Roosevelt Regional MSWWashington219 9Wasatch RegionalUtah203 10Hillsborough CountyFlorida203

In a 2021 PBS interview, a spokesperson for Apex Landfill reported that the facility captured and treated enough landfill gas to power nearly 11,000 homes in Southern Nevada.

In fact, landfills can create electricity through a process called landfill gas (LFG) recovery. When organic waste decomposes, it produces methane gas which can be captured and purified to create fuel for generators.

As it happens, methane gas from landfills is the third-largest source of human-related carbon emissions, equivalent to 24 million gas passenger vehicles driven for one year. Its capture and treatment is a significant opportunity to combat emissions.

Mapped: The World’s Wettest and Driest Countries

Published

2 mins ago

on

May 24, 2024 Graphics/Design:

See this visualization first on the Voronoi app.

Where are the World’s Wettest and Driest Countries?

This was originally posted on our Voronoi app. Download the app for free on iOS or Android and discover incredible data-driven charts from a variety of trusted sources.

From tropical rainforest nations to the sandy deserts of North Africa and the Middle East, the world’s wettest and driest countries are a study in contrasts.

We map and rank the countries that receive the highest and lowest average annual precipitation in millimeters, per latest data from the World Bank.

Ranked: Top 10 Wettest Countries

Colombia tops the list of nations with the highest average precipitation at 3,240 millimeters (128 inches) in a year.

Its Tutunendo district is the one of the world’s wettest places, averaging nearly 12,000 mm (463 inches) of rain annually.

RankCountryAverage Annual
Precipitation (mm) 1Colombia3,240 2Sao Tome & Principe3,200 3Papua New Guinea3,142 4Solomon Islands3,028 5Panama2,928 6Costa Rica2,926 7Samoa2,880 8Malaysia2,875 9Brunei2,722 10Indonesia2,702
Note: Figures are rounded.

Off the coast of Africa however, Sao Tome & Principe is not far behind Colombia, receiving about 3,200 mm of rain in 2020.

Papua New Guinea and the Solomon Islands also average more than 3,000 mm of rain in a year, and Panama (2,928 mm) rounds out the top five.

Noticeably, all 10 countries lie in close proximity to the equator, and near oceans, where rising hot and humid air leads to abundant rainfall.

Ranked: Top 10 Driest Countries

On the other end of the scale, Egypt records the lowest average annual rainfall across all countries, at 18 mm (0.7 inches). For comparison, Colombia receives nearly 180x the amount of rain Egypt does.

RankCountryAverage Annual
Precipitation (mm) 1Egypt18 2Libya56 3Saudi Arabia59 4Qatar74 5UAE78 6Bahrain83 7Algeria89 8Mauritania92 9Jordan111 10Kuwait121
Note: Figures are rounded.

In fact, countries from North Africa and the Middle East make up the entirety of this list of the driest countries in the world.

Learn

Mapped: The Income a Family Needs to Live Comfortably in Every U.S. State

Published

2 hours ago

on

May 22, 2024 Graphics/Design:

See this visualization first on the Voronoi app.

The Income a Family Needs to Live Comfortably in Every U.S. State

This was originally posted on our Voronoi app. Download the app for free on iOS or Android and discover incredible data-driven charts from a variety of trusted sources.

Families in the top five most expensive U.S. states require an annual income exceeding $270,000 to live comfortably.

This visualization illustrates the income necessary for two working adults with two children to maintain a comfortable lifestyle in each state.

“Comfortable” is defined as the income needed to cover a 50/30/20 budget, with 50% allocated to necessities like housing and utilities, 30% to discretionary spending, and 20% to savings or investments.

The calculations for family income needed in each state were done by SmartAsset, using the cost of necessities sourced from the MIT Living Wage Calculator, last updated on Feb. 14, 2024.

Massachusetts Tops the List

Massachusetts is the most expensive state to live comfortably in, requiring a total family income of about $301,184. Hawaii ($294,611) comes in second, followed by Connecticut ($279,885).

Housing is one main reason Massachusetts is an expensive state to live in, particularly in the Boston area. In addition, the state also has a high cost of living, including expenses such as healthcare and utilities.

RankStateIncome for 2 working adults raising 2 children 1Massachusetts$301,184 2Hawaii$294,611 3Connecticut$279,885 4New York$278,970 5California$276,723 6Colorado$264,992 7Washington$257,421 8Oregon$257,338 9New Jersey$251,181 10Rhode Island$249,267 11Vermont$248,352 12Minnesota$244,774 13New Hampshire$244,109 14Alaska$242,611 15Maryland$239,450 16Nevada$237,286 17Virginia$235,206 18Illinois$231,962 19Arizona$230,630 20Pennsylvania$230,464 21Maine$229,549 22Delaware$228,966 23Wisconsin$225,056 24Utah$218,483 25Michigan$214,490 26Nebraska$213,075 27Georgia$212,826 28Montana$211,411 28Iowa$211,411 30Idaho$211,245 31North Carolina$209,331 31Ohio$209,331 33Florida$209,082 34Indiana$206,003 35New Mexico$203,923 36Wyoming$203,424 37Missouri$202,259 38North Dakota$202,176 39Texas$201,344 40South Carolina$200,762 41Kansas$196,768 42Tennessee$195,770 43Oklahoma$194,106 44Alabama$193,606 45South Dakota$192,608 46Kentucky$190,112 47Louisiana$189,613

Mapped: Indian States with Cities Over 1 Million People

Published

16 seconds ago

on

May 20, 2024 Graphics/Design:

See this visualization first on the Voronoi app.

Mapped: Indian States with Cities Over 1 Million People

This was originally posted on our Voronoi app. Download the app for free on iOS or Android and discover incredible data-driven charts from a variety of trusted sources.

Slightly more than one-third of the 1.4 billion Indian population lives in an urban area. So where are the country’s most populous cities, and how are they spread across the country’s 28 states and eight union territories?

This map shows the number of Indian urban agglomerations (cities) with more than a million residents in each jurisdiction. Data for this graphic is sourced from 2024 urban agglomeration estimates in the UN World Urbanization Prospects.

Ranked: Indian States by Cities with 1M Residents

India’s Uttar Pradesh state has 10 cities with a population size of 1 million or more. It is also India’s most populous state, home to 240 million people. This makes it comparable to the size of Pakistan, the fifth most populous country in the world.

Indian StateCities with 1M Residents (2024)City Names Uttar Pradesh10Lucknow, Kanpur, Agra, Meerut,
Varanasi, Prayagraj,
Bareilly, Aligarh,
Moradabad, Saharanpur Kerala7Kozhikode,
Malappuram,
Thrissur, Kochi,
Thiruvananthapura,
Kannur, Kollam Maharashtra6Mumbai, Pune,
Nagpur, Nashik,
Aurangabad, Solapur Tamil Nadu6Chennai, Coimbatore,
Madurai, Tiruppur,
Tiruchirappalli, Salem Gujarat4Ahmedabad, Surat,
Vadodara, Rajkot Madhya Pradesh4Indore, Bhopal,
Jabalpur, Gwalior Jharkhand3Jamshedpur, Ranchi,
Dhanbad Karnataka3Bengaluru, Mysore,
Hubli-Dharwad Punjab3Ludhiana, Amritsar,
Jalandhar Rajasthan3Jaipur, Jodhpur, Kota West Bengal3Kolkata, Asansol, Siliguri Andhra Pradesh2Visakhapatnam,
Vijayawada Chhattisgarh2Raipur, Durg-Bhilainagar Telangana2Hyderabad, Warangal Assam1Guwahati Bihar1Patna Odisha1Bhubaneswar Uttarakhand1Dehradun Chandigarh*1Chandigargh Delhi*1New Delhi Jammu & Kashmir*1Srinagar
*Union Territories. Figures rounded. Some city names may have changed since this data was published.

Further south, Kerala (7), Maharashtra (6), and Tamil Nadu (6) also have more than five cities with a million or more people.

Meanwhile, some cities, including India’s national capital, New Delhi, are either in or are themselves union territories—areas directly administered by the central government.

Ten Indian states—most of them from the country’s northeast region—don’t have a single city with 1 million residents.

All together, India has 65 cities with more than one million inhabitants.

Mapped: The Top Export in Each EU Country

Published

13 seconds ago

on

May 20, 2024

See this visualization first on the Voronoi app.

The Top European Union Exports by Country

This was originally posted on our Voronoi app. Download the app for free on iOS or Android and discover incredible data-driven charts from a variety of trusted sources.

The European Union (EU) exports over $6 trillion in products annually. The bloc boasts a diversified economy that encompasses fuel and mineral industries, cars, vaccines, and technology.

In this map, we display European Union countries’ top exports as of 2022. Data for the map was sourced from The Observatory of Economic Complexity.

Cars and Petroleum Dominate EU Exports

Belgium, Bulgaria, Croatia, Finland, Greece, Lithuania, Sweden, and the Netherlands have petroleum gas or refined petroleum as their top export product.

The Netherlands exported $68.1 billion worth of refined petroleum in 2022, ranking third among the largest exporters globally. The country is home to BP Rotterdam Refinery, the biggest oil refinery in Europe.

CountryTop Export (2022)Value (USD Billions) 🇦🇹 AustriaCars$7.7B 🇧🇪 BelgiumPetroleum Gas$54.7B 🇧🇬 BulgariaRefined Petroleum$3.5B 🇭🇷 CroatiaRefined Petroleum$1.5B 🇨🇾 CyprusPassenger and Cargo Ships$1.3B 🇨🇿 Czech RepublicCars$25.5B 🇩🇰 DenmarkPackaged Medicines$15.9B 🇪🇪 EstoniaElectricity$1.1B 🇫🇮 FinlandRefined Petroleum$6.9B 🇫🇷 FrancePlanes, Helicopters, and/or Spacecraft$26.6B 🇩🇪 GermanyCars$149.0B 🇬🇷 GreeceRefined Petroleum$16.4B 🇭🇺 HungaryCars$12.3B 🇮🇪 IrelandVaccines$47.3B 🇮🇹 ItalyPackaged Medicines$34.4B 🇱🇻 LatviaSawn Wood$1.2B 🇱🇹 LithuaniaRefined Petroleum$5.5B 🇱🇺 LuxembourgIron blocks$1.6B 🇲🇹 MaltaIntegrated Circuits$1.1B 🇳🇱 NetherlandsRefined Petroleum$68.1B 🇵🇱 PolandCars (parts & accessories)$15.3B 🇵🇹 PortugalCars$4.4B 🇷🇴 RomaniaCars$6.7B 🇸🇰 SlovakiaCars$26.9B 🇸🇮 SloveniaPackaged Medicines$12.5B 🇪🇸 SpainCars$33.6B 🇸🇪 SwedenRefined Petroleum$12.9B

Besides petroleum, automobiles (and automobile parts) significantly contribute to the EU economy. Austria, Czech Republic, Germany, Hungary, Portugal, Poland, Romania, Slovakia, and Spain have automotive products as their top exports.

With well-known car brands such as Volkswagen, BMW, Mercedes-Benz, Audi, and Porsche, Germany alone generates around $150 billion per year from car exports.

Other products help diversify the EU economy. France’s top export is planes, helicopters, and/or spacecraft, while Italy and Denmark excel in the packaged medicines industry. Ireland has a

Mapped: The 10 U.S. States With the Lowest Real GDP Growth

Published

2 hours ago

on

May 16, 2024 Article/Editing: Graphics/Design:

See this visualization first on the Voronoi app.

The Top 10 U.S. States, by Lowest Real GDP Growth

This was originally posted on our Voronoi app. Download the app for free on iOS or Android and discover incredible data-driven charts from a variety of trusted sources.

While the U.S. economy defied expectations in 2023, posting 2.5% in real GDP growth, several states lagged behind.

Last year, oil-producing states led the pack in terms of real GDP growth across America, while the lowest growth was seen in states that were more sensitive to the impact of high interest rates, particularly due to slowdowns in the manufacturing and finance sectors.

This graphic shows the 10 states with the least robust real GDP growth in 2023, based on data from the Bureau of Economic Analysis.

Weakest State Economies in 2023

Below, we show the states with the slowest economic activity in inflation-adjusted terms, using chained 2017 dollars:

RankStateReal GDP Growth 2023 YoYReal GDP 2023 1Delaware-1.2%$74B 2Wisconsin+0.2%$337B 3New York+0.7%$1.8T 4Missississippi+0.7%$115B 5Georgia+0.8%$661B 6Minnesota+1.2%$384B 7New Hampshire+1.2%$91B 8Ohio+1.2%$698B 9Iowa+1.3%$200B 10Illinois+1.3%$876B U.S.+2.5%$22.4T

Delaware witnessed the slowest growth in the country, with real GDP growth of -1.2% over the year as a sluggish finance and insurance sector dampened the state’s economy.

Like Delaware, the Midwestern state of Wisconsin also experienced declines across the finance and insurance sector, in addition to steep drops in the agriculture and manufacturing industries.

America’s third-biggest economy, New York, grew just 0.7% in 2023, falling far below the U.S. average. High interest rates took a toll on key sectors, with notable slowdowns in the construction and manufacturing sectors. In addition, falling home prices and a weaker job market contributed to slower economic growth.

Meanwhile, Georgia experienced the fifth-lowest real GDP growth rate. In March 2024, Rivian paused plans to build a $5 billion EV factory in Georgia, which was set to be one of the biggest economic development initiatives in the state in history.

These delays are likely to exacerbate setbacks for the state, however, both Kia and Hyundai have made significant investments in the

Mapped: The Top Exports in Asian Countries

Published

8 seconds ago

on

May 15, 2024

See this visualization first on the Voronoi app.

The Top Exports in Asian Countries

This was originally posted on our Voronoi app. Download the app for free on iOS or Android and discover incredible data-driven charts from a variety of trusted sources.

Asia’s exports span a wide range, from petroleum and minerals to technology components and textile products.

In this map, we display the top exports (as of 2022) of Asian countries, excluding Middle Eastern nations. Data was sourced from The Observatory of Economic Complexity.

Editor’s Note: For our most recent Middle East themed version of this map, go here.

Diverse Economies Across the Continent

Like in many other countries around the world, petroleum is a significant component of the Asian continental economy, with petroleum products as India’s top exporting category, amounting to approximately $86 billion per year in trade.

Another top product coming from Asia is integrated circuits. These are used in a multitude of applications spanning computing, communications, consumer electronics, automotive, industrial automation, medical devices, aerospace and defense.

CountryTop Export (2022)Top Export Value (USD Billions) 🇨🇳 ChinaBroadcasting Equipment$272.0 🇹🇼 TaiwanIntegrated Circuits$223.0 🇰🇷 South KoreaIntegrated Circuits$121.0 🇯🇵 JapanCars$89.0 🇮🇳 IndiaPetroleum Products$86.2 🇸🇬 SingaporeIntegrated Circuits$81.9 🇲🇾 MalaysiaIntegrated Circuits$78.9 🇻🇳 VietnamBroadcasting Equipment$58.5 🇮🇩 IndonesiaCoal Briquettes$50.8 🇰🇿 KazakhstanPetroleum Products$47.6 🇵🇭 PhilippinesIntegrated Circuits$32.4 🇦🇿 AzerbaijanPetroleum Products$19.4 🇹🇭 ThailandMachinery$19.3 🇹🇲 TurkmenistanPetroleum Products$9.2 🇧🇩 BangladeshTextiles and Garments$9.1 🇲🇳 MongoliaCoal Briquettes$6.5 🇺🇿 UzbekistanGold$5.2 🇧🇳 BruneiPetroleum Products$4.9 🇵🇰 PakistanTextiles and Garments$4.9 🇲🇲 Myanmar (Burma)Ore & Minerals$4.1 🇰🇭 CambodiaTextiles and Garments$3.1 🇱🇦 LaosElectricity$2.4 🇱🇰 Sri LankaTea$1.3 🇬🇪 GeorgiaOre & Minerals$1.0 🇦🇲 ArmeniaOre & Minerals$0.7 🇹🇯 TajikistanGold$0.6 🇦🇫 AfghanistanCoal Briquettes$0.4 🇲🇻 MaldivesPlanes, Helicopters, Spacecraft$0.4 🇧🇹 BhutanOre & Minerals$0.3 🇹🇱 Timor-Leste (East Timor)Petroleum Products$0.3 🇳🇵 NepalPalm Oil$0.2 🇰🇬 KyrgyzstanPetroleum Products$0.1 🇰🇵 North KoreaOre & Minerals$0.03

In addition, the region is also a big manufacturer of semiconductors, crucial for applications ranging from telecommunications and artificial intelligence to

Mapped: U.S. States By Number of Cities Over 250,000 Residents

Published

12 seconds ago

on

May 13, 2024 Graphics/Design:

See this visualization first on the Voronoi app.

Mapped: U.S. States By Number of Cities Over 250K Residents

This was originally posted on our Voronoi app. Download the app for free on iOS or Android and discover incredible data-driven charts from a variety of trusted sources.

Over 80% of the American population lives in an “urban area” according to the U.S. Census Bureau. But where are all of the country’s largest cities, and what patterns can we see from their state locations?

This map shows U.S. states by their number of incorporated areas (i.e. cities or towns) that have more than 250,000 residents. Data for this map comes from 2024 estimates made by World Population Review, which were based on the latest U.S. Census Bureau figures.

ℹ️ An incorporated area is a legally recognized region with its own local government, empowered to enact and enforce laws within its boundaries, often including cities, towns, or villages. Ranked: U.S. States By Number of Cities Over 250K Residents

California and Texas—also the most populous U.S. states—each have more than 10 cities with at least a quarter of a million inhabitants.

StateCities With 250K
PeopleCity Names California15Los Angeles, San
Diego, San Jose,
San Fransisco,
Fresno, Sacramento,
Long Beach, Oakland,
Bakersfield, Anaheim,
Riverside, Stockton,
Irvine, Santa Ana,
Chula Visa Texas12Houston, San
Antonio, Dallas,
Fort Worth, Austin,
El Paso, Arlington,
Corpus Christi, Plano,
Lubbock, Laredo,
Irving Arizona6Phoenix, Tucson,
Mesa, Chandler,
Gilbert, Glendale Florida6Jacksonville, Miami,
Tampa, Orlando,
St. Petersburg,
Port St. Lucie North Carolina5Charlotte, Raleigh,
Greensboro, Durham,
Winston-Salem Ohio4Columbus, Cleveland,
Cincinnati, Toledo Nevada4Las Vegas, Henderson,
North Las Vegas,
Reno Colorado3Denver, Colorado
Springs, Aurora Tennessee2Nashville, Memphis New York2New York, Buffalo Pennsylvania2Philadelphia, Pittsburgh Indiana2Indianapolis,
Fort Wayne Oklahoma2Oklahoma City, Tulsa Kentucky2Louisville/Jefferson
County, Lexington Wisconsin2Milwaukee, Madison Missouri2Kansas City, St. Louis Nebraska2Omaha, Lincoln Virginia2Virginia Beach,
Chesapeake Minnesota2Minneapolis, St. Paul New Jersey2Newark, Jersey City Illinois1Chicago Washington1Seattle District of Columbia1Washington D.C. Massachusetts1Boston Oregon1Portland Michigan1Detroit New Mexico1Albuquerque Maryland1Baltimore Georgia1Atlanta Kansas1Wichita Louisiana1New Orleans Hawaii1Honolulu Alaska1Anchorage

Two other warm weather states, Arizona and Florida, also have a

Mapped: Countries Where Recreational Cannabis is Legal

Published

8 seconds ago

on

May 12, 2024

See this visualization first on the Voronoi app.

Countries Where Recreational Cannabis is Legal

This was originally posted on our Voronoi app. Download the app for free on iOS or Android and discover incredible data-driven charts from a variety of trusted sources.

In 2024, Germany became the third European Union country to legalize cannabis for personal use, following Malta and Luxembourg.

Here, we map the countries where recreational cannabis use is allowed as of April 2024, based on data from Wikipedia.

Limited to Few Countries

In total, only nine countries have legalized recreational cannabis use nationwide. However, just a few of them have licensed sales.

CountryEffective dateLicensed sales since 🇺🇾 UruguayDecember 2013July 2017 🇬🇪 Georgia30 July 2018Never authorized 🇿🇦 South Africa18 September 2018Never authorized 🇨🇦 Canada17 October 201817 October 2018 🇲🇽 Mexico28 June 2021Never authorized 🇲🇹 Malta14 December 2021Never authorized 🇹🇭 Thailand9 June 20229 June 2022 🇱🇺 Luxembourg21 July 2023Never authorized 🇩🇪 Germany1 April 2024Never authorized 🇺🇸 U.S.Varies by stateVaries by state 🇦🇺 AustraliaVaries by jurisdictionNever authorized

At the federal level, cannabis is still considered an illegal substance in the United States. That said, individual states do have the right to determine their laws around cannabis sales and usage. Currently, cannabis is allowed in 24 states, 3 territories, and the District of Columbia.

Interestingly, the oldest legal text concerning cannabis dates back to the 1600s—when the colony of Virginia required every farm to grow and produce hemp.

Since then, cannabis use was fairly widespread until the 1930s when the Marihuana Tax Act was enforced, prohibiting marijuana federally but still technically allowing for medical use.

Today, the U.S. cannabis market is a $30 billion business. By the end of the decade, that number is expected to be anywhere from $58 billion to as much as $72 billion.

Similar to the U.S., Australia does not allow the use at the national level, but cannabis can be used legally in the Australian Capital Territory, which includes the capital Canberra.

Mapped: U.S. Immigrants by Region

Published

14 seconds ago

on

May 9, 2024 Article/Editing:

See this visualization first on the Voronoi app.

Breaking Down America’s Immigrant Population

This was originally posted on our Voronoi app. Download the app for free on iOS or Android and discover incredible data-driven charts from a variety of trusted sources.

The United States is home to more immigrants than any other nation, surpassing the combined totals of the next four countries: Germany, Saudi Arabia, Russia, and the United Kingdom.

To add context to this impressive fact, we’ve illustrated the regions from which U.S. immigrants originated. “Immigrants” in this context refers to individuals who are residing in the United States but were not U.S. citizens at birth.

These statistics were sourced from the Migration Policy Institute, which analyzed data from the U.S. Census Bureau’s 2022 American Community Survey (ACS).

U.S. Immigrants by Region

From this graphic, we can see that Asia and Latin America emerge as the primary sources of immigration, collectively accounting for 81% of America’s 46.2 million immigrants.

Region# of Immigrants% of Total Europe4,728,94810 Asia14,349,08031 Africa2,752,9656 Oceania288,5601 Northern America828,7022 Latin America23,233,83450 Total46,182,089100

Latin America alone contributes half of the immigrant population. Mexico stands out as the largest contributor to U.S. immigration, with 10.7 million immigrants, attributable to its geographical proximity and historical ties.

Economic factors, including wage disparity and employment opportunities, drive many Mexicans to seek better prospects north of the border.

From Asia, the two largest country sources are China (2.2 million) and India (2.8 million).

Learn More About U.S. Immigration From Visual Capitalist

If you enjoyed this post, be sure to check out Why Do People Immigrate to the U.S.? This visualization shows the different reasons why immigrants chose to come to America in 2021.