Geographical Information

Las Angeles is a widely diverse geographic area. Most is desert basin surrounded by the Sam Gabriel mountain range and divided by the Santa Monica. LA has 75 miles (120.701 km) of coast line. La is 9 feet below sea level For the last 23 years, ocean levels around the world have climbed by about 3 inches on average, and scientists say the sea will continue to rise as warming temperatures cause ice sheets in Greenland and Antarctica to melt.But California, and the rest of the western United States, has actually seen ocean levels fall. That's about to change, thanks to a shift in weather patterns, and scientists are sounding the alarm. Los Angeles lies on a hilly coastal plain with the Pacific Ocean as its southern and western boundaries. Numerous canyons and valleys also characterise the region, making it an area of diverse climatic conditions. The predominant weather influence is the warm, moist Pacific air, keeping temperatures mild throughout the year. Summers are dry and sunny—the city averages 329 days of sun per year—with most of the precipitation occurring during the winter months. Smog and air pollution are common problems, gathering in the coastal basin during periods of little air movement. Other unusual weather phenomena include the Santa Ana winds, which bring hot, dusty winds of up to 50 miles per hour from the surrounding mountains, and the occasional flash floods in the canyon areas, causing mudslides. Los Angeles, officially the City of Los Angeles but commonly known as L.A., is California's most populous city and the second-most populous city in the country after New York City. With just 472 square miles, Los Angeles had an official population at the 2010 census of 3,792,621. The population in 2016 is estimated to be just over 4 million. The City of Los Angeles is the second most populous city in the country. It also sits in one of the most ethnically diverse counties in the United States. The City of Angels, as it is known, is a global city, and the Los Angeles Combined Statistical Area (CSA) is the third largest in the world, after Greater Tokyo and New York. It's also the 66th most populous city proper in the world, and the metropolitan area is the 18th largest. The greater Los Angeles area is much larger, though, and its metropolitan area has a population of 12.8 million, with 18.5 million living in the CSA.

California, the country’s largest state by population, has long been a magnet for immigrants from all over the world. Beginning with the Gold Rush in the mid-19th century, California’s population surged as immigrants from countries as varied as China, Germany, and Mexico began migrating to California with hopes of securing a better life for themselves and their families. Today, foreign-born residents comprise a very large percentage of the state’s population—and continue to be a fundamental component of the state’s economy. According to the American Community Survey, more than 27 percent of the state’s population in 2013 was foreign-born, a larger portion than in any other state. And though California did not see a rapid growth in its immigrant population from 2000 to 2013, it still is home to far more immigrants in real terms than anywhere else in the country: currently more than 10 million people living in California were born abroad, or 2.5 times more foreign-born residents than live in New York, the state with the second-largest immigrant population in the nation.

Size of foreign-born population (2013)

10,175,839

Percent of state’s population that is immigrant

27.0%

Growth in foreign-born population 2000-2013

14.5%

Top countries of origin

Mexico, Philippines, China

Challenges facing LA

LA is facing lots of challenges I will explain in detail Three of the

Global warming: The city of Los Angeles is known for its wide sandy beaches, mild temperatures, and lack of humidity. The combination of cool winters and warm summers sets it apart from almost every other city in the nation. Los Angeles is a hedonist’s paradise. But rising temperatures are already putting that paradise at risk. Climate change will likely degrade LA’s ideal climate, In the future LA’s climate will look like Jacksonville, Florida’s, climate today. Sea level rise also threatens L.A. county’s famous beaches, piers, and boardwalks, which attracted almost 41 million tourists who accounted for more than $US16 billion in expenditures in 2012.

Pollution- Las Angeles has some of the most contaminated air in the country. With a population of over 18 million, the Los Angeles area is a large basin with the Pacific Ocean to the west, and several mountain ranges with 11,000-foot peaks to the east and south. Diesel engines, ports, motor vehicles, and industries are main sources of air pollution in Los Angeles. Frequent sunny days and low rainfall contribute to ozone formation, as well as high levels of fine particles and dust.

Air pollution in Los Angeles has caused widespread concerns. In 2011, the Public Policy Institute of California (PPIC) Survey on Californians and the Environment showed that 45% of citizens in Los Angeles consider air pollution to be a “big problem”, and 47% believe that the air quality of Los Angeles is worse than it was 10 years ago.In 2013, the Los Angeles-Long Beach-Riverside area ranked the 1st most ozone-polluted city, the 4th most polluted city by annual particle pollution, and the 4th most polluted city by 24-hour particle pollution.

Both ozone and particle pollution are dangerous to human health. The Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) engaged a panel of expert scientists, the Clean Air Scientific Advisory Committee, to help them assess the evidence. The EPA released their most recent review of the current research on health threat of ozone and particle pollution.

Smog LA

Crime- The crime rate in LA is considerably higher than the nation average, although at 27 crimes per 1000 residents it is not among the communities with the very highest crime rates. The chance of becoming a victor of crime in LA is 1 in 37 people importantly LA has the highest rate of motor bike theft in the nation according to the FBI.

Population project 2050

With some of the largest ports in the nation, the economy of Southern California is closely tied to the logistics and goods movement industry. This region is taking aggressive action to build infrastructure that enhances its role as a global gateway while providing opportunities for its fast growing native-born and immigrant populations.

Population 2010: 24,361,642

Percent of U.S. Population: 8%

Population 2025: 29,010,560

Population 2050: 39,381,675

Projected Growth (2010 - 2050): 61.7% (15,020,033)

Career

Los Angeles is the second largest city in the United States, making it one of the many destinations that people flock to for new opportunities and career advancement. The city is also referred to as the “Entertainment Capital of the World,” leading the way in movies, television, music and gaming. Creative professionals thrive in the environment, but Los Angeles is also known for Aerospace, Tourism, and Technology as well.

Lifestyle

When people think of L.A. they think of bikinis, golden tans, convertible tops, beach volleyball, red carpets, and the California Dreaming soundtrack. All of those things exist here, but this is also an “as seen on T.V.” image painted so well by the prominent entertainment industry. The diversity and booming industry makes you feel like anything is possible. The people of L.A. are as gorgeous as they come, and there’s certainly no shortage of things (and people) to do in this town.

Relaxation

Los Angeles is a bustling city, but when you compare it to other large cities it often takes on a more relaxed persona where health and fitness are a top priority. There are over 30 miles of luxurious beaches that are also very well known attractions seen on movies and frequented by surfers, yogis, tourists and vendors. In L.A. you can actually go hiking, snow skiing, and surfing all in one day. The Hilly landscape provides picturesque views and the perfect getaway for a quiet place to think and work.

Food

Los Angeles is a foodie’s paradise, with over 25,000 restaurants and bars. There’s truly something for everyone, from Thai food, Chinese, Persian, Mexican, & American. This town also caters to vegans, with a plethora of options that are so tasty you’d never imagine them being healthy too. You may have also heard of In-N-Out Burger which happens to be a staple in SoCal. It’s a very popular local chain that offers a fresh take on the average burger and fries; a must try while in L.A.

Love

Many people find their way to the city by following their heart. You hear stories of people who move here to follow a significant other or family member, often having no desire to live here until a loved one broaches the subject. I will say that love is one of the riskier reasons to move here, but the experience itself usually makes everything worthwhile.

Population project 2100

Los Angeles, United States of America. 20,011,865. The plan is L.A.’s first-ever sustainability strategy, and it contains dozens of short-, medium- and long-term goals for improving the city's water, energy, climate, transportation, green jobs, housing and living wages through 2035.

The mayor’s report shows, encouragingly, that L.A. has made a great deal of progress over the past year and that the city is well on its way to meeting the vast majority of the plan's 2017 goals.

That said, there is still plenty of room for improvement.

But first the good news. On the drought front, the city is on the verge of meeting its 20% water use reduction target by January 2017. Currently, average water use in L.A. is about 106 gallons per capita per day, a more than 19% reduction since the start of 2015. Refreshingly, our leaders led by example by reducing the city's municipal water use by over 30%.

In its effort to fight climate change, Los Angeles met its 2017 goals for greenhouse gas emission reduction early (20% less than 1990 levels). The number of electric vehicle chargers (1,024 compared with the 1,000 target), the number of sewage spills (118 compared with the 125 goal), city procurement of zero-emission vehicles and the square feet of commercial space enrolled in the L.A. Better Buildings Challenge energy efficiency program (67 million square feet compared with the 60-million-square-foot target) are also all ahead of schedule. Plans to unveil a new bike-share program in downtown L.A. are expected to come to fruition this summer.

Sustainability is a lot more than the environment, however, and the city’s bold move to adopt a path to a $15-per-hour minimum wage and large proposed investments in reducing homelessness and providing additional low-income housing will hopefully improve the quality of life for many local workers and residents that need it most.

Now, however, we get to the rough stuff.

L.A. still has a long way to go in meeting its 2017 goals for "cool roof" conversions (only 712 of the 10,000 target) and water pipe infrastructure replacement (38 miles compared with the 95-mile target). It's especially lagging on Property Assessed Clean Energy home energy efficiency retrofits (2,600 homes of the 12,500 goal). This is particularly disappointing since buildings and houses are our largest consumers of energy. Helping residents make their homes more efficient is one of the best ways to reduce our contribution to climate change.

The city also needs to jump-start its efforts in a big way to reach its goal of 900-1,500 megawatts of increased local solar power by 2025. Hopefully, the recent energy rate and long overdue water rate increases will provide the needed funds to get L.A. on track.

Global warming solutions

The Clean Power Plan

In Washington, D.C., President Obama has demonstrated strong leadership on this issue. For example, in June 2014 he moved forward with what The New York Times called “the strongest action ever taken by an American president to tackle climate change.”

The president’s Clean Power Plan would limit — for the first time ever — carbon pollution from dirty power plants.

Why power plants? The country’s more than 500 coal-fired power plants are America’s No. 1 source of global warming pollution — even bigger than cars and trucks.

In fact, the Clean Power Plan would cut this pollution at least 30 percent by the end of the next decade. By giving the states the option to replace dirty coal plants with wind, solar and energy efficiency, it also has the potential to speed the shift to clean power. And the plan is an essential part of the success of the Paris Agreement, the first-ever universal, legally binding global climate deal, which was signed by 195 countries in December 2015.