LA’s Coal Announcement Clears the Way for a Brighter Future

Media Contacts

Momentum builds around call for Los Angeles to become a world-class solar leader

Environment California

Los Angeles – Today, the Los Angeles Department of Water and Power (LADWP) and Los Angeles Mayor Antonio Villaraigosa formally announced that Los Angeles will end its heavy reliance on coal-fired electricity by 2025. Currently, approximately 40 percent of the city’s energy comes from coal, imported from two plants in Arizona and Utah.

“Angelenos can celebrate a cleaner, brighter future today,” said Michelle Kinman, Environment California’s clean energy advocate. “We applaud Mayor Villaraigosa for fulfilling his pledge to make Los Angeles a coal-free city, setting the stage for the city to make stronger commitments to clean energy sources such as solar power.  We also congratulate the Sierra Club’s LA Beyond Coal campaign for their leadership on this historic achievement.”

As the nation’s largest municipal utility, LADWP is crucial to the success of getting California off coal and shifting the state toward a clean energy future. As LADWP makes decisions about the sources of energy that will define the utility for decades to come, it is imperative that clean, local sources of power lead the way in order to reduce air pollution, meet global warming goals and invest in local businesses.

A growing list of elected officials—including mayoral candidates Eric Garcetti and Wendy Greuel—and 30 businesses and organizations are calling for the city to derive a significant amount of its energy from the sun, building rooftop solar power on housing, office buildings, schools, warehouses and parking lots. Specifically, they are calling for Los Angeles to set a goal of building 1,200 megawatts of rooftop solar by 2020 to generate nearly 20 percent of the city’s peak summertime electricity needs. Such a goal would make Los Angeles a solar power leader unmatched anywhere in the country. (The current list of endorsers is available at http://www.environmentcalifornia.org/resources/cae/list-endorsers-1200-mw-rooftop-solar-goal-los-angeles.)

“Today’s announcement demonstrates the pivotal role that Los Angeles’s elected officials can play in leading the way towards a clean energy future,” said Kinman. “We look forward to working with the next mayor to build on today’s achievement and secure a strong solar-powered future for Los Angeles.”

###

Environment California is a statewide, nonprofit, environmental advocacy organization working to protect California’s air, water and open spaces. More information can be found at www.EnvironmentCalifornia.org.