Los Angeles Mayor Signs Green Directive

TUESDAY, FEBRUARY 25, 2020

Los Angeles Mayor Eric Garcetti signed off on “L.A.’s Green New Deal: Leading by Example” earlier this month, kicking off the city’s “Decade of Action.”

The directive outlines a plan to cut out the city’s emissions in several areas including buildings, transportation, electricity and trash.

“The science could not be clearer, and the stakes could not be higher. We must act this decade to save the planet and create a more equitable, prosperous, and healthy future for our children and grandchildren,” said Mayor Garcetti.

shalunts / Getty Images

Los Angeles Mayor Eric Garcetti signed off on “L.A.’s Green New Deal: Leading by Example” earlier this month, kicking off the city’s “Decade of Action.”

shalunts / Getty Images

Los Angeles Mayor Eric Garcetti signed off on “L.A.’s Green New Deal: Leading by Example” earlier this month, kicking off the city’s “Decade of Action.”

“There is literally no time to waste — because what we do in the next ten years will determine the health of our planet and whether there’s a job, a paycheck, and a place for everyone in our economy.”

The Plan

In addition to plans that include a zero-carbon grid, zero waste, zero wasted water, zero-carbon transportation, air quality improvements and other financial investments, the Mayor has plans for zero-carbon buildings and cool city improvements, which include the following:

• Clean and Healthy Municipal Buildings – New municipally owned buildings or major renovations will be designed to reach carbon neutrality by 2030 by maximizing energy efficiency, smart design, on-site renewable generation and electrification. In addition, the airports will provide capital construction work plans by July that work to achieve carbon neutral facilities.
• Reduce Carbon in Construction Materials – The Buy Clean California Act will be adopted to reduce greenhouse gas emissions from building materials, which will require Environmental Product Disclosures for all steel, flat glass and mineral wool insulation by January 2021.
• Cool Our Neighborhoods – This strategy will further the goal to install about 250 lane miles of cool pavement by 2028, among other goals.
• Cool Roofs and Surfaces – Amendments will be proposed to the Building Code, including updates that require cool roofs to cover all new roofs and renovations above “an appropriate threshold” by June.

Legislation Elsewhere

Los Angeles joins a slew of other cities that have put forward various climate, green and cool initiatives in the past few years.

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In 2018, Denver passed its Green Roof Initiative, which not only requires new, large buildings to be constructed with green roofs, but also requires buildings of a certain size to install a green roof when the current one is up for replacement.

In April of last year, New York City council approved a package of bills and resolutions—known as the Climate Mobilization Act—intended for radical energy efficient improvements. The act requires that all new residential and commercial buildings in the city have green roofs made up of either plants, solar panels or small wind turbines—or a combination of all three.

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In October, Mayor Bill de Blasio announced plans to conduct deep energy retrofits throughout the city.

Also last year, Nebraska updated the state’s energy codes for residential and commercial buildings for the first significant time in a decade, taking cues from both Boston and Ontario, which updated their regulations to get new construction as close to net zero as possible.

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Finally, in December, St. Louis passed green roof legislation.