A higher number of high heat days correlates with more cardiovascular deaths, according to new research.
According to an article by Maryn McKenna in Wired, new research suggests that “cardiovascular deaths linked to extreme heat could triple to almost 5,500 extra deaths per year, if nothing is done to curb the greenhouse gas emissions that are driving climate change and extreme heat events” by the middle of the century. Even with some emissions reductions, the study predicts a doubling of cardiovascular deaths.
“Thanks to the combined influences of age, genetic vulnerability, geography, and the heat-trapping aspects of urban development, the investigators predict that older adults will be at higher risk, and Black adults will be at higher risk than any other group,” the study notes.
“The projections confirm what other researchers have been finding: a reliable relationship between climate change and harm to human health, not just in the US but worldwide.” Meanwhile, a vast web of policies and historical decisions put low-income households and communities of color at higher risk for being impacted by extreme weather and pollution.
Cities are increasingly recognizing the dangers of extreme heat and taking steps to identify the areas at highest risk and launch interventions such as increasing green space, providing shade, and installing reflective surfaces to mitigate the urban heat island effect.
FULL STORY: As Extreme Heat Increases, Heart Attacks Will Rise
Planetizen Federal Action Tracker
A weekly monitor of how Trump’s orders and actions are impacting planners and planning in America.
The state-sanctioned urbicide of Austin
People don’t kill cities. Freeways do.
US to reduce Colorado River water deliveries to Mexico
A new Colorado Treaty amendment reduces Mexico’s Colorado River water allocation by 250,000 acre feet.
Baltimore to break ground on $50 million Transit Priority Project
The project will bring faster bus trips, safer streets and better bike connections to Baltimore.
Airbnb launches $250 million 'last-dollar financing' housing accelerator, makes first investment in Austin
The company will put $6.4 million towards affordable housing development in Texas’ capital.
Guerilla urbanists are building DIY bus stop benches in Chicago
A before-and-after of one of the bus stops with a new bench. The new benches are not officially sanctioned or permitted, but the residents who placed them hope they will be the start of a network of DIY benches across the city.
FREE Course: Walkable City 1: Why Walkability?
After describing his path towards focusing on walkability as the essence of good planning, Jeff Speck marches through his five principal reasons for making more walkable places.
Reinventing Malls: Planning Alchemy—Turning Gray Fields Into Gold
The course focuses on the opportunities and imperatives that shape reinvention of mall sites.
Eagle County Government
Harvard University Graduate School of Design
Nashville Planning Department
The Architects Foundation
University of Cincinnati Online
The Pocatello Development Authority
The Urban Renewal Agency of the City of Pocatello
Journal of the American Planning Association