California high-speed rail agency unveils sustainability report

The California High-Speed Rail Authority (CHRSA) late last week released its latest annual sustainability report.

The document updates progress made in 2017 and details the agency's approach to designing, constructing and operating high-speed rail in a sustainable manner.

Key achievements include recycling 99 percent of all construction materials, which kept 118,000 tons of waste material out of landfills, CHSRA officials noted in a press release.

Plus at the construction site, the agency continues to use equipment that satisfies the Environmental Protection Agency's Tier 4 emissions standard. This helps reduce nitrogen oxide, carbon monoxide and particulate matter emissions, according to the agency.

On the business side of sustainability, CHRSA continued to work with small businesses, including dozens of companies located in disadvantaged communities.

"Our goal is to create the greenest infrastructure project in the nation, both in its operations and its construction," said Brian Kelly, CHSRA's chief executive officer. "Sustainability is at the core of our mission and is one of the values that guide our work."

The authority has committed to using 100 percent renewable energy to power the future high-speed rail system, which is expected to move passengers between San Francisco and Los Angeles in less than three hours.