The requirement applies to buildings approved after April 1, and affordable housing projects approved after June 1 of next year. Accessory dwelling units and cooking equipment for restaurants are exempt.
This year, Los Angeles will become California’s largest city to implement a ban on natural gas in new buildings. That’s thanks to an ordinance unanimously approved last month by the City Council which requires that new buildings within city limits be constructed with all-electric appliances.
Environmental advocates have hailed the law as crucial for achieving Los Angeles’ goal of making all new buildings net-zero by 2030. Currently, buildings are the city’s most emissions-intensive sector, accounting for some 43 percent of its overall climate pollution.
“We think this is a super important, logical first step that allows us to make progress in our net-zero carbon goals,” Chelsea Kirk, policy analyst at the economic justice nonprofit Strategic Actions for a Just Economy, told the Los Angeles Daily News. Electrifying the city’s buildings could also reduce indoor air pollution, limit the risk of fires and explosions, and even lower construction costs.
Read the full article here: https://grist.org/beacon/la-bans-natural-gas-in-new-buildings/