LOS ANGELES (CNS) - Los Angeles Mayor Eric Garcetti today set a goal of the city achieving net zero carbon emissions by 2050, an increase from the previous goal of an 80 percent reduction. Garcetti made the announcement at the International Mayors Climate Summit at Boston University.``Los Angeles is a city that plans for the future,'' Garcetti said.
``Our city is pursuing the most aggressive emissions targets in the world because the future of our planet should not be jeopardized by inaction in Washington. I strongly believe that we each have an obligation to fight climate change by any means at our disposal.''
In 2015, Garcetti released his Sustainable City Plan, which outlined a series of aggressive environmental goals for the city. Garcetti's office said the final analysis of the carbon neutral goal will be included in the next pLAn refresh, which is set for release in early 2019.
President Donald Trump pulled the United States out of the 2015 Paris Climate Agreement last year, saying the 195-nation agreement on reducing greenhouse gas emissions was too hard on American businesses. After Trump pulled out, Garcetti joined hundreds of other mayors in pledging to stick to uphold the agreement.
``While President Trump denies, delays and defers on climate change, America's cities drive ahead decisively,'' said former Secretary of State John Kerry, who also spoke at the summit.
``Mayor Garcetti's decision to put Los Angeles on a path toward zero carbon emissions is another important step in the right direction.
We need leadership across all sectors and at all levels of government that accepts the magnitude of the climate threat and demonstrates the commitment to fight it."