For Earth Day, Corporate Knights magazine released their first annual "Green Provincial Report" and the results are grim - and confusing. It's generating a lot of controversy because Prince Edward Island, which has been associated with the moniker "Canada's Greenest Province", received the lowest score.

Although the report's authors claim their methodology did adjust for size of population and economy, Prince Edward Island came in last, with a grade of F and a score of 32 per cent.

The province lagged behind because of what the survey's authors called its poor energy efficiency, high car dependency, extreme paucity of protected land and a dearth of certified green buildings.

No province fared well in the ratings. The highest scoring province, British Columbia, received a C+. New Brunswick and Newfoundland and Labrador both received F grades as well. Nova Scotia received a D - days after Corporate Knights designated Halifax as Canada's greenest mid-sized city.

PEI's grade is quite shocking to me, as Statscan had earlier rated them as having the most environmentally conscious citzenry.

Looking closer at the statistics, I can hazard a guess as to how the outcome came to be. No figures are listed for recycled waste - meaning PEI loses in its strongest category on a technicality. PEI has little protected land, as it does not have the luxury of marking off large expanses of tundra wilderness as other provinces and territories do. PEI suffers the most in the Buildings category as there are no LEED-certified buildings in PEI - not surprising considering their tallest skyscraper is 10 stories tall.

Corporate Knights is a quarterly magazine that covers corporate responsibility. The study was made up of expert surveys and online research. You can see their full Green Provincial Report on their website.