Without the resources of larger cities, towns with fewer resources can still work to coordinate efforts across agencies and plan for heat events early in the year.
How can small towns that lack the resources of bigger cities prepare their agencies and residents to prepare for and respond to extreme heat events? Ysabelle Kempe explores the issue in Smart Cities Dive.
While some cities such as Phoenix and Houston have hired Chief Heat Officers tasked with leading cross-departmental efforts to address extreme heat events, others don’t have the funding to do so. In an interview with Smart Cities Dive, Ladd Keith, assistant professor of planning and sustainable built environments at the University of Arizona, said “Because heat is a relatively new climate risk compared to other climate risks, it’s not surprising at all to see that a couple silver bullet strategies have emerged because when you first learned about something, your knowledge is really limited.”
For Keith, one key strategy is coordination between various city and county departments, whether or not the city is able to hire a full-time climate or heat officer. For now, “I think where we’ve ended up is a lot of urban forestry efforts and a lot of focus on cooling centers.” Keith also recommends year-round planning for summer operations. “It’s not great to plan for cooling centers when it’s already hot and when it’s already summer because you’re going to have a little bit less effective coordination and missed opportunities with that.”
FULL STORY: Without chief heat officers, how can smaller cities respond to extreme heat?
Depopulation Patterns Get Weird
A recent ranking of “declining” cities heavily features some of the most expensive cities in the country — including New York City and a half-dozen in the San Francisco Bay Area.
California Exodus: Population Drops Below 39 Million
Never mind the 40 million that demographers predicted the Golden State would reach by 2018. The state's population dipped below 39 million to 38.965 million last July, according to Census data released in March, the lowest since 2015.
Chicago to Turn High-Rise Offices into Housing
Four commercial buildings in the Chicago Loop have been approved for redevelopment into housing in a bid to revitalize the city’s downtown post-pandemic.
How California Transit Agencies are Addressing Rider Harassment
Safety and harassment are commonly cited reasons passengers, particularly women and girls, avoid public transit.
Significant Investments Needed to Protect LA County Residents From Climate Hazards
A new study estimates that LA County must invest billions of dollars before 2040 to protect residents from extreme heat, increasing precipitation, worsening wildfires, rising sea levels, and climate-induced public health threats.
Federal Rule Raises Cost for Oil and Gas Extraction on Public Lands
An update to federal regulations raises minimum bonding to limit orphaned wells and ensure cleanup costs are covered — but it still may not be enough to mitigate the damages caused by oil and gas drilling.
City of Costa Mesa
Licking County
Barrett Planning Group LLC
HUD's Office of Policy Development and Research
Mpact Transit + Community
HUD's Office of Policy Development and Research
City of Universal City TX
ULI Northwest Arkansas
City of Laramie, Wyoming
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