Land use and transportation planning will play key roles in an effort by Los Angeles County to achieve carbon neutrality in 30 years.
"The Los Angeles County Board of Supervisors has adopted an ambitious climate and sustainability plan that sets the county to go carbon neutral by 2050," reports Jason Plautz.
The OurCounty plan is described on its website as the "boldest county sustainability plan in the nation." At the heart of the plan's approach, according to the website, is an intersectional approach to sustainability:
For example, an action to support local water [pdf] supplies can provide new or improved parks and open space [pdf], while also reducing energy [pdf] from pumping water into Los Angeles from hundreds of miles away. Reducing energy use also reduces air and climate pollution [pdf] as power plants are used less, which also contributes to improved public health [pdf].
As Plautz explains, the result of that approach is 150 strategies focused on health, food systems, transit-oriented development, and housing affordability. "The plan says county officials will use zoning policies to promote thriving places for current and future generations,'" adds Plautz.
FULL STORY: Los Angeles County passes ambitious climate plan
APA Recognizes Los Angeles County's Sustainability Plan
The American Planning Association (APA) has honored Los Angeles County with the Award of Excellence in Sustainability for the 2019 OurCounty Sustainability Plan.
A Transit and Land Use Planning Shift in Federal Way, Washington
Federal funding for Sound Transit's Federal Way Link extension and a new transit-oriented land use plan are changing the future of Federal Way.
A Vision for the Future: LA County Releases Draft Sustainability Plan
Los Angeles County has released the draft 2025 OurCounty Sustainability Plan — shaped by community input — and is inviting public feedback through August 22 to help guide the County’s path toward a more sustainable, equitable, and resilient future.
The state-sanctioned urbicide of Austin
People don’t kill cities. Freeways do.
US to reduce Colorado River water deliveries to Mexico
A new Colorado Treaty amendment reduces Mexico’s Colorado River water allocation by 250,000 acre feet.
New Jersey’s second-largest city bans standalone data centers
Jersey City will continue to allow co-location facilities, such as those meant for research institutions that store their own data.
Amtrak not solely to blame for New Jersey commuter rail's unreliability, report finds
A new study from the Garden State Initiative found that NJ Transit’s budget grew 20% across a 4 year period, but reliability declined significantly over the same period.
EPA erases limits on planet-warming pollution from power plants
Under Monday’s plan, power plants would still have some limits on how much mercury, arsenic and other contaminants they can emit.
Phoenix announces new on-demand transit service, more frequent RAPID buses
Both new services will launch in October, and are part of Phoenix's Project Effective Access Solutions for Easing Congestion.
FREE Course: Walkable City 1: Why Walkability?
After describing his path towards focusing on walkability as the essence of good planning, Jeff Speck marches through his five principal reasons for making more walkable places.
Reinventing Malls: Planning Alchemy—Turning Gray Fields Into Gold
The course focuses on the opportunities and imperatives that shape reinvention of mall sites.
Eagle County Government
Harvard University Graduate School of Design
Nashville Planning Department
The Architects Foundation
University of Cincinnati Online
The Pocatello Development Authority
The Urban Renewal Agency of the City of Pocatello
Journal of the American Planning Association