Photo by Laura Rotondo
When Mayor Vince Gray rolled out an ambitious 20-year sustainability plan in 2012 that highlighted ways the city could become the “cutting edge of environmental stewardship and protection,” it seemed like something of a political booster and pipe dream.
But since then, Gray’s administration has worked hard to make D.C. one of the greenest and “most livable” cities in the country. And it shows. During his time as mayor, Gray’s administration has allocated money to plant more trees in the city, signed legislation to ban polystyrene-made foam containers, increased the size of trash and recycling cans (which then led to a whole fiasco involving removal of old cans, but that’s a whole other story), and continued to convert more buildings to be LEED-certified green, making D.C. the national leader in green buildings. Indeed, Gray’s scorecard in terms of making D.C. more green and sustainable is pretty high, and the city’s energy efficiency continues to grow.
With less than a month until he leaves office, Gray’s final sustainability report highlights ways that the District and mayor-elect Muriel Bowser’s administration can continue making D.C. a more environmentally friendly city. The report, which includes 131 recommended actions from ten task forces, is broken down into three categories: short-term actions (which can be done within one fiscal year); medium-term actions (things that can be achieved within one-three fiscal years); and long-term actions (things that would take longer than three fiscal years to achieve).
It’s a massive list of recommendations to go into great detail about, but, as the report says, “some are clearly low hanging fruit ready for implementation and quick wins now, while others require a shift in funding priorities or legislation to move forward.”
Some of those easy fixes include recommendations like “[providing] technical assistance, grants, and other incentives for small businesses and local companies focused on or seeking entry into the green economy,” working to improve bike infrastructure, and reducing energy consumption by 20 percent at certain facilities.
But the long-term plans can be a bit more tricky. Recommendations like “[reducing] the amount of food waste generated through gleaning, education, and changes in food handling practices,” and creating more green affordable housing will take a lot of careful consideration and planning.
“The actions the District government will take in response to these recommendations will continue to propel our city forward as a leader in sustainability by further integrating sustainability into everything the District government does,” Gray said in a release. “My administration has set a new bar for sustainability, and the District is now on the road to becoming the healthiest, greenest, most livable city in the nation. However, much work remains to be done before we get there.”
You can read the full report below:
