Mayor Rahm Emanuel wants to make Chicago the greenest city in the world and says that doesn't have to have a negative impact on jobs.
In fact, he said the two goals can be achieved together.
"I do believe this is going to be the century of the city. And to have a city that grows and prospers both economically and for families, you have to have an environmental policy and a jobs/economic growth policy that work together," Emanuel said Tuesday at a Sierra Club luncheon. "I think from everything from mass transit to water policy to open parks to recycling to closing two coal-fire power plants, it's all part of one integrated strategy."
Emanuel said his administration's plan -- dubbed "Sustainable Chicago" -- set clear environmental goals the city hopes to achieve by 2015.
One of the long-term goals is to get homeowners to use water meters so they can be charged based on the amount of water they use rather than an estimate. But he said the city isn't ready to make those water meters mandatory.
The mayor was honored by the Sierra Club for what the organization said were impressive signs of progress toward a healthier, greener city.
