LOS ANGELES, Calif. /California Newswire/ — Mayor Antonio Villaraigosa signed an ordinance into law last Friday that will drastically improve the way Los Angeles deals with its stormwater. The Low Impact Development (LID) Ordinance calls for development and redevelopment projects to manage the stormwater in a way that helps clean it and re-use it.
“In tough economic times like these, we know how important it is to find innovative ways to solve our city’s biggest problems. Stormwater runoff has been the number one source of pollution to our rivers and oceans. The Low Impact Development (LID) Ordinance I signed Friday will change the way Los Angeles manages our stormwater. Let’s look at stormwater as a resource, not a liability. Initiatives like LID move us one step closer to a cleaner, safer, and healthier city for our families now and for generations of Angelenos to come.”
Developed by the Board of Public Works and the Bureau of Sanitation in partnership with the Mayor’s office, community members, environmental organizations, business groups and the building industry, the ordinance calls for builders to use modern designs, tools and techniques to manage stormwater at its source—before reaching the LA River or the Pacific Ocean. By using on-site water management like rain barrels, permeable pavement, rainwater storage tanks, infiltration swales and curb bumpouts, LID methods address runoff and pollution in the most effective, and most cost-efficient, way possible, and capture it for re-use or recharge of our groundwater basin.
The LID Ordinance is part of the City’s long-term goal of improving the quality of environment and the quality of life in Los Angeles. The City has taken unprecedented efforts to tackle pollution throughout the City. The Clean Truck Program took 2,000 of the dirtiest, diesel spewing trucks off the road and into permanent retirement. Los Angeles also created the cleanest, zero-emission bus fleet in the country, and is investing in a pilot program to use electric buses.
