LOS ANGELES (CNS) - A ``Green New Deal'' is needed at the local level in Los Angeles to mirror a resolution backed by nearly 100 Democratic House and Senate members to convert the economy away from dependency on fossil fuels, a half-dozen City Council members said today.
Nury Martinez, Paul Koretz, Mike Bonin, Curren Price, Marqueece Harris- Dawson and Monica Rodriguez introduced a motion that would direct the Department of Water and Power and other city departments to prepare a report on the development of the plan.
The motion comes a day after Mayor Eric Garcetti announced that he had decided to direct the LADWP not spend billions of dollars to repower three coastal natural gas power plants and shift more focus toward green energy.
``On the heels of the historic announcement yesterday at LADWP headquarters, I was thrilled to introduce a motion today calling for a `Green New Deal' in the city of Los Angeles. The power plants are just a start, and we are proud to take it further by introducing this landmark resolution for a cleaner Los Angeles,'' Martinez said.
``The commitments we make today, and moving forward, need to be part of a larger narrative,'' she said. ``We will take on climate change head-on, and we will do so with a strategy where the fight against climate change and the path to a clean energy future begins and ends in our frontline communities.''
The national Green New Deal resolution sets a goal for the country to get 100 percent of its power through renewable energy by 2030. The council motion would have the city draft a policy which mirrors the ``principles and priorities'' of the GND unveiled by Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez, D-N.Y., and backed by many of her party's leading candidates for president, including Sen. Kamala Harris, D-Calif.
Garcetti last year set a goal for Los Angeles to be carbon neutral by 2050.