Community Corner
Palos Verdes is One of Highest Greenhouse Gas Emitters in LA County
A map shows suburbs across the country, including Palos Verdes, have higher greenhouse gas emissions than urban cities.
Despite Los Angeles’ lack of public transportation, University of California, Berkeley researchers say its overall greenhouse gas emissions aren’t too bad. The suburbs including the entire Palos Verdes Peninsula, however are another story.
An interactive map produced by researchers Daniel Kammen and Chris Jones shows that although most cities are color coded green (for low emissions), nearby suburbs are red (showing high emissions). The entire Palos Verdes Peninsula, Manhattan Beach, Pacific Palisades, Malibu, La Canada Flintridge, Beverly Hills, Bel Air and San Marino all share the red distinction.
Sprawled out suburbs that require more driving are some reasons for the higher emissions, but it isn’t completely clear. Income is the strongest correlation to high greenhouse gas emissions, states Kammen in a Gist Article.
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“When you spend more, you consume more,” said Kammen.
The bigger and greener the city, the worse its suburbs are, according to the map. Residents can look up their zip code that includes all of the nation’s 31,531 zip codes. Regional sources of electricity, driving patterns, weather conditions and consumption of goods and services are all factored in to show emissions within each zip code.
