What is Sustainability?

The word sustainability, formerly heard mainly on the green fringe of society, is now used fairly regularly in the halls of government up and down California.

While we may expect traditionally progressive towns like Berkeley, Santa Monica and Santa Cruz to embrace a more ecological way of life, cities all over the state are starting to look at environmental impacts and natural resources while planning new projects, not just after lawsuits are filed and species are endangered.

Though everyone seems to have a different definition of sustainability, the United Nations defines it as "development that meets the needs of the present without compromising the ability of future generations to meet their own needs." Many advocates describe it as trying to find a way for our growing state to live within its means, and thinking of the future when making choices in the present

For Los Angeles, most of those choices have to do with how to accommodate the six million people projected to settle there over the next twenty years, and what life in L.A. will be like when the five-county region hits the 23-million mark.

Santa Monica Farmer's Market

The answer, many believe, lies in sustainability, and plans for ecologically-friendly projects and policies are being drawn up all over Southern California. Solar panels are sprouting on the rooftops of many buildings, bike paths have been built, the state and cities have bought land for several new urban parks, and there is even talk of trying to revitalize the degraded and forgotten Los Angeles River itself.

It can be difficult to make changes in the way a city the size of Los Angeles, all 465 square miles and 3.6 million people, does business. Becoming sustainable requires the coordination of resources often handled by separate departments, like energy, water, sewage, landscaping, transportation and building permits. In a small city, the people of those departments may work only a few offices apart, making coordination easier than in a larege city. Beaurocracy and entrenched departmental rivalries and habits can, and do, slow down L.A.'s progress toward sustainability.

However, the sheer size of the city can also make the effort worthwhile. If a metropolis like Los Angeles goes green, it could have a greater impact on the region than a dozen small cities, and convince other large areas across the country to follow suit. After all, if the city with one of the worst reputations in California can make the change, who can't?

Though starting from far behind, LA is building up impressive momentum on green development. There are even a few areas where some would say that the region is on the cutting edge of sustainability, such as large alternative-fueled vehicle fleets, an increasing amount of green building, and wastewater recycling.