California’s climate action plans fall behind on equity, sticking instead to boilerplate solutions, new study says
“But despite their growing popularity, these plans aren’t without criticism. Environmental justice groups often find faults in their approach – or lack thereof – when it comes to including equity in their planning, like how they address affordable housing or funding public transportation.
‘Cities aren’t really getting outside of their comfort zone,’ said Adam Millard-Ball, an associate professor of urban planning at UCLA. ‘They don’t force the city to do something it wasn’t already going to do.’
A new study published in late January surveyed 170 of the existing climate action plans throughout the state, noting a rise in the inclusion of language around equity. In the study, that meant any time a plan mentioned a desire to combat “historical or present inequalities between groups.” But even when a plan did mention equity, it was not necessarily tied to definite action.”