Mayor’s Message
LOS ANGELES—Mayor Eric Garcetti today marked the one-year anniversary of his Sustainable City pLAn with a ceremony in Boyle Heights, where he described the city’s record gains in conservation, clean energy, and environmental justice.
The pLAn is a roadmap for a Los Angeles that is environmentally healthy, economically prosperous, and equitable in opportunity for all — now and over the next 20 years. The full plan and a new report on the first year’s progress are available at lamayor.org/plan.
“We are delivering on the ambitious goals we laid out in the pLAn, and those efforts are resulting in a greener and more sustainable Los Angeles,” said Mayor Garcetti. “I’m proud of the progress we’ve made together to protect the environment in a way that grows our economy, and makes a difference for Angelenos now and in the future. We will continue building on these achievements in the months and years ahead.”
Among the highlights from the first year of the pLAn:
- Angelenos reduced their water use 19 percent, approaching the goal of a 20 percent reduction by 2017 and cementing L.A.’s position as the nation’s most water-efficient big city per capita.
- Los Angeles has already surpassed the goal of 1,000 publicly available electric vehicle (EV) charging stations by 2017, and has more publicly available EV charging stations than any other city in the U.S.
- The City has already reached its goal of including at least 50 percent electric vehicles in all new fleet purchases.
As part of Friday’s event, Mayor Garcetti also signed the “Clean Up Green Up” ordinance — a law that will help protect three L.A. communities at increased risk from pollution.
The historic ordinance designates Boyle Heights, Pacoima/Sun Valley and Wilmington as “green zones” — where new or expanding industrial operations must reduce their impact on neighboring residents through buffer areas, landscaping, and other measures. A related measure mandates strict air filtration standards in new developments within 1,000 feet of a freeway.
SELECTED ACCOMPLISHMENTS FROM THE REPORT:
Water: 19 percent water reduction across the entire city, 36 percent at City facilities
Solar: Over 180 MW of installed local solar, the most of any city in the country
Energy Efficient Buildings: Surpassing our goal of 60 million square feet enrolled in L.A. Better Buildings Challenge
Climate: Launched Mayors’ National Climate Action Agenda, which now has 34 mayors
Waste: LA Sanitation broke ground on new bio digester to run Hyperion Plant
Housing: City has permitted over 34,000 housing units since July 2013
Transit: 6 new Metro rail stations opened on the Gold Line; Expo extension to Santa Monica opens in May
Prosperity: First big city to increase minimum wage to $15, leading the way for the state
Resilience: Over 1.2 million square feet of cool roofs installed to fight urban heat island
Air Quality: With upcoming 100 EVs for LAPD, L.A. has largest municipal fleet of EVs
Environmental Justice: Clean Up Green Up ordinance passed
Urban Ecosystem: Joint investment of $6 million with county for LA River Valley Greenway