San Francisco has always been at the forefront of sustainable design and planning, and these days the city's Planning Department is hoping to go one step further. A task force has been established to explore the idea of a Central SoMa Eco-District, or district-scale sustainable development projects that would work together to reduce environmental impacts. The task force describes it as a "interwoven and closed-loop system for waste, water, urban food production and energy" - think rainwater catchment systems that are used to irrigate parks and urban agriculture, on-site wind and solar energy generation, and wastewater filtration systems under the freeway. The district is generally bound by Market, Townsend, 1st, and 7th Streets, and the task force is using the already sustainable San Francisco Public Utilities Commission's headquarters on Golden Gate Avenue is an example of what they envision. The task force hopes to present their recent report to various city commissions and the Board of Supervisors in the upcoming year. After that, they envision establishing a non-profit to oversee the district, with implementation in the next 5-20 years. · Central SoMa Eco-District Task Force Report [SF Planning]
· Planning Department Sustainable Development [SF Planning]
· SF explores an ecodistrict idea for South of Market [SF Examiner]
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