Gabrielle Weeks for City Council
2nd District -- Long Beach, CA
Vote: June 6, 2006

Work With Weeks

Sustainability Plan for the City of Long Beach

If elected June 6, I pledge to bring to the City Council a comprehensive Sustainability Plan to make Long Beach the greenest City in California.  The framework of this plan is detailed below, and would be discussed with residents through a variety of public workshops to fine tune the plan and make it a success.  This Sustainability Plan will have numerous benefits, including: 

• Significant reductions in air and water pollution, trash and debris

• Reduction in illness and premature deaths

• Increased productivity and school attendance

• The creation of hundreds of meaningful jobs with good wages and benefits, right here in Long Beach

• Increased tourism, sales, construction, and economic development

• Increased tax revenue

Background

The idea of sustainability isn't new.  In fact, the City of Long Beach's 2010 Citywide Strategic Plan identifies “Becoming a Sustainable City” as a primary strategic goal.  The simplest way of thinking about sustainability is to think of future generations, and make them a pledge that they will have all the freedoms and luxuries we had in our lifetimes. It means we find alternatives to using non-renewable resources, and find ways of doing the same things we do now without generating any lasting pollution.  

The Challenge

As published in the Long Beach Press Telegram, Daniel Brezenoff, a member of the Long Beach Greens, recently laid out a challenge to every elected leader and candidate in Long Beach to give Long Beach a "Green Future."  My sustainability plan is the embodiment of that challenge, laying out how we can achieve that vision within our lifetimes and set the foundation within a few years to become a truly Sustainable City.  We all want a clean environment for ourselves and for future generations - the concept of sustainability builds consensus from all parts of the City.  This plan provides the leadership to make sustainability happen. 

The Blueprint

The framework of this Plan is to gradually make everything that happens in Long Beach consistent with our residents goals of environmental stewardship.  This will be achieved through the following 3 steps:

1) Establish an Environmental Commission for the City of Long Beach, charged with promoting sustainability Citywide and ensuring City actions are consistent with environmental stewardship.

2) Develop guiding principles  that will serve as the mission statement for the Environmental Commission.  Identify key interest areas for the Environmental Commission, including:

• The Port 

• Transportation 

• Energy

• Public Education 

3) Utilize the Environmental Commission to vet proposals for enhancing the sustainability of our City.  Proposals will be considered at public meetings, and recommendations will be made to the City Council or other appropriate Departments/Commissions.  Some initial proposals might include:

• Increasing the use of ethanol, biodiesel, and other renewable fuels in Long Beach to 10% by 2010.

• Enhancing the fuel efficiency of the City's fleet of vehicles by a minimum of 10%, starting with the vehicles assigned to the City Council. 

• Developing a "one-stop" website for all environmental impacts reports relating to projects in Long Beach, to make it easier for Long beach residents to know what projects are proposed in their City and submit comments to improve the projects. 

• Creating an Environmental Resource Center for residents, businesses, and organizations to get information about reducing their environmental footprint. 

• Crafting an initiative to make Long Beach a 100% renewable-powered City, through solar, wind and wave energy.  Begin by placing solar panels on the roofs of municipal buildings. 

• Significantly increasing the number of trees planted in Long Beach.

• Protecting and restoring our wetlands.

• Reconfiguring our breakwater and establishing a marine sanctuary. 

• Helping our schools take out their asphalt and replace it with trees and gardens, especially native drought-tolerant gardens. 

• Creating more parks, including pocket parks, neighborhood gardens, and open space areas for the enjoyment of Long Beach residents.

• Developing a plan for net reduction of pollution at the Port of Long Beach. 

• Implementing a smart growth plan for development.   Smart growth can reclaim areas, improve neighborhood cohesion, increase available parking, walkability, and affordability while attracting employers and maintaining a high standard of living for residents.   

• Enhancing Long Beach Transit's public transportation system and working with Metro to coordinate services.  

• Expanding the City's Green Building policy, to apply to private developments as well as municipal projects.

A clean and healthy environment is critical to the future of our City.  I want Long Beach to become a sustainable city.  Good environmental policy is good economic policy, because a clean city maintains productivity, increases tourism, and benefits from investments in green technology.  

WorkWithWeeks.com Home