Plan Verde

With a population of more than 20 million people, and a reputation for high crime rates and pollution, Mexico City has set out to change its ways and image through sustainable solutions.

Plan Verde is a strategy that focuses on fighting environmental and urban problems with green solutions. It aims to better the interaction between the citizens and their environment to create a more thoughtful use of natural resources and create behavioral changes in society. It also allows citizens to know what the objectives are and which actions the government proposes for achieving environmental sustainability.

Plan Verde offers a 15-year strategy with $1 billion-per-year investment to develop new transport, water, waste, land conservation and alternative energy programs for the city. Climate adaptation is a central concern, and a $5.4 billion Climate Action Program aims to reduce the city’s carbon dioxide emissions by 1 million tons every year.

As part of a “Travel by Bike” initiative, 300 km of bike routes are being created in “corridors for non-motorized transport”. There are also nine rapid transport corridors with 200km of restricted lanes being built for buses. And traditional taxis are being replaced by electric cars to cut emissions. In the waste sector there is an ambitious project to capture biogas from a landfill site.

More forward-thinking adaptation is also built into the program. For example, the work done on urban ravines to reduce the impact of heavy rain, which is likely to benefit vulnerable low income groups who live in such locations.

With Plan Verde, the ultimate goal is for Mexico City to be turned into an example for the rest of the world by the implementation of climate policies and new systems that will transform the sprawling, polluted capital city into a green urban leader.