In the face of the climate emergency, officials in Los Angeles are working on policies to stop the construction of new gas stations. Being the second-largest city in America, LA could become the largest city in the world to prohibit new fossil fuel infrastructure. 

“We are ending oil drilling in Los Angeles. We are moving to all-electric new construction. And we are building toward fossil-fuel-free transportation,” said Paul Koretz, the LA council member who is working on the policy. “Our great and influential city, which grew up around the automobile, is the perfect place to figure out how to move off the gas-powered car.”

California is leading the rest of the country in the switch to green transportation, with plans to limit the number of gas-powered cars on the road as well. Other cities like Bethlehem and New York have announced similar policies. 

This is a titanic shift for LA, though, as it is a heavily car-reliant city and ranked among the worst for US commuters. The proposal was inspired by Petaluma, California, a city in the Bay Area that was the first in the world to ban the construction of new gas stations. Other nearby towns are taking up similar plans and measures to address the climate emergency. These include the phasing out of fossil fuels by banning fossil fuel infrastructure and the expansion of green transportation. 

“Our daily bad habits are destroying the natural systems we depend on to exist. It’s really up to cities to turn around climate change,” Shrader said. “If you have lung cancer you stop smoking. If your planet is on fire, you stop throwing gasoline on it.”