Is L.A.’s “Green New Deal” Achievable?

GUEST OPINION

L.A. Green New Deal lettering projected on a wall on Christmas 2018 (Photo – Backbone Campaign)

Los Angeles mayor Eric Garcetti made headlines recently by unveiling the city’s version of a “Green New Deal,” complete with ambitious goals to create a zero-emission transportation network, a zero-carbon electricity grid, and a Los Angeles that “won’t send a single piece of trash” to the landfill by 2050.

By Ethan Elkind

The goals in the new sustainability plan [See PDF] are necessary to meet our environmental and sustainability needs, but how can the city make them feasible to achieve?

I discussed the zero-waste goal in particular on KPCC radio’s AirTalk program last week, along with my UCLA Law colleague Cara Horowitz. My comments were drawn largely from the 2016 CLEE report “Wasting Opportunities” on boosting energy recovery from municipal solid waste to meet climate goals.

The bottom line?

Achieving zero waste will require significant reduction of materials in use, increases in recycling and composting, and — yes — some type of energy recovery from whatever is left over.

> You can listen to the broadcast here.