Extreme heat is expensive.
That’s the conclusion of a study presented Monday by The Nature Conservancy, which commissioned a look at the costs of rising temperatures in Phoenix, the hottest large metropolitan area in the U.S.
Working with infrastructure consulting firm AECOM, the nonprofit environmental organization known for its nature preserves and efforts to protect biodiversity, this time turned its attention to urban Phoenix, the fifth-largest city in the U.S. with 1.608 million people.
David Hondula, a climate scientist formerly with Arizona State University who now heads Phoenix’s new heat response and mitigation office, said the report will be useful for cities like his in getting funding for measures to help cool down neighborhoods. He served on the study’s advisory committee.
Phoenix was always scorching, but climate change has made it even hotter, with temperatures in early September still climbing to 111 degrees (43.8 Celsius). The temperatures reached as high as 118 degrees (48 Celsius) over the summer.
The people most vulnerable to the heat are often in poor and racially diverse communities where many households lack the means to cope with heat waves that are becoming more frequent, widespread, and severe. Phoenix’s Maricopa County recorded 323 heat-related deaths in 2020.
Republished with the permission of the Associated Press.
