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Talk about a way to focus a city's attention on bicycle safety:

After taking heat for lack of bike-infrastructure support -- what mayor doesn't get flack for this? -- Los Angeles Mayor Antonio Villariagosa climbed on a bike for the first time in years last Saturday for a ride to the beach. Within 30 minutes a taxi driver pulled out in front of him on Venice Boulevard, knocking the mayor to the pavement. He hit his head -- he was wearing a helmet -- and broke his right elbow.

Los Angeles Mayor Antonio Villariagosa bike-infrastructure bike

Los Angeles is once again king of the hill when it comes to the number of energy-efficient buildings, according to the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency’s second ranking of cities nationwide.

The scorecard calculates how many commercial structures in 2009 earned the agency’s Energy Star rating, which is given to buildings that perform in the top 25% of similar buildings nationwide. Eligibility extends to 13 types of structures such as schools, hospitals, office buildings, retail stores and supermarkets.

Los Angeles had 293 buildings with the label in 2009, covering 76 million square feet and saving an estimated $93.9 million in costs.

Los Angeles energy-efficient buildings Energy Star epa greennumbers

A new proposed law to go into effect in 2011 could have Los Angeles residents changing their habits when it comes to rainfall. Rather than just complaining that there's some strange wet substance falling from the sky, all new homes, large developments, and some redevelopment projects will start to appreciate those few rainy days by harvesting and redirecting rainfall. The Department of Public Works has unanimously approved the new ordinance that will require the use of several different methods to capture, reuse or redirect runoff from 3/4 inch or heavier rainstorms.

los angeles rainwater rainwater capture rainwater harvesting reuse runoff recycle

Mayor Antonio Villaraigosa wants to make Los Angeles the "cleanest, greenest big city" in the United States, but a key project to bring renewable energy across the desert to the city could change under pressure from environmental groups.

Los Angeles Department of Water and Power, the largest U.S. municipal utility with 4 million customers, wants to build an 85-mile transmission line for clean energy, called the Green Path North transmission line.

Activists have decried a proposed path that would cut through the Yucca Valley, two wildlife preserves and the San Bernardino National Forest.

Building transmission lines to bring in power from solar and wind farms has raised environmental and permitting issues across the nation.

los angeles renewable energy green path north transmission lines greenmonktv

San Francisco is usually designated the green capital of California, but now LA is trying to take the City by the Bay’s crown with the world’s largest solar plan. Yesterday, Mayor Antonio Villaraigosa announced a long-range plan to gather enough solar power to meet 10 percent of LA’s energy needs by 2020.

la los angeles solar energy solar power