The Tradegy of Urban Heat Islands - 323

Last week I revisited a climate issue settled in the science community in 2012. The question was, “Are meteorological weather stations, due to their locations in cities, skewing temperature data to the hot side?” Meteorologists and climate scientists knew prior to 2011 they needed to adjust the data in UHI’s to prevent distortion. They made the corrections, but some scientists remained skeptical. In 2012, climate denier and Physicist Richard Muller did an extensive examination of meteorological weather stations in UHI locations. He found the data showing the rate the earth is warming was accurate supporting the previous science investigations. At that point, he ceased being a denier and joined mainstream science advocating the end of burning coal, oil and gas.

Muller’s wakeup moment was twelve years ago.

Urban Heat Islands are again in the news. They are not skewing data, they are killing people. UHIs are becoming a tragedy of the Climate Commons.  

Aristotle warned that which is common to the greatest number gets the least amount of care. Men pay most attention to what they own and care less for what is held in the common. Since the atmosphere is the common shared by the most people, Aristotle correctly warned us of human abuse.

Even though the consequences of greenhouse gas abuse are well known, people still believe the atmosphere is theirs to exploit. If the government sets limits, they feel it is an invasion of their freedom.  Therein is the tragedy. In a world that is limited, ruin is the destination toward which all men rush pursuing their own personal interests. Their twisted interpretation of freedom has the potential to bring ruin to all.

The Tragedy of the Commons has happened over and over throughout history.  Overhunting and fishing has resulted in the extinction of species. Over grazing of public lands has destroyed vast natural pastures. Ruthless overharvest of forests put at risk the regeneration of those forests. Industrial pollution of the air and water killed what lived in the air and water. And this includes humans.

Here, and in much of the world, mankind has come together to reign-in the over exploitation or pollution of the Commons. We have hunting and fishing regulations set by the DNR. Grazing on Bureau of Land Management lands is regulated by what the land can tolerate. Federal and State Forests are professionally managed and regulated so they regenerate. The Clean Air and Water Acts protect our common waters and air. The Environmental Protection Agency protects us from toxic substances.

Today we must recognize that the climate needs our immediate protection. There is no plant, animal, fish, or bug that is not impacted by the unrestrained release of greenhouse gases. The earth is rapidly heating. Overheated coral reefs are bleaching white and dying. Boreal and pine forests are drying and burning. Lakes such as Lake Superior are warming rapidly with inevitable species turnover. As we heat, every creature must find a way to adapt or perish.

Man is no exception. Today, Urban Heat Islands have become, once again, a controversial subject. We who live in the sparsely populated North do feel the heat, but nothing like people who live in the global south, or our southern cities.

People who cannot afford air conditioning are often people who do not have access to green spaces and shade. Because carbon dioxide and water vapor absorb infrared heat during the day and release the energy at night, nighttime temperatures are not cooling like they used to, which robs the poor of nighttime rest and recovery.

Heat caused death is accelerating.

Cities are responding by increasing green space by planting trees and shrubs which provide shade and promote cooling via evapotranspiration.

City managers are encouraging homeowners to use reflective materials when reroofing. Instead of black heat absorbing roofs, light colored roofs reflect the sun’s rays back to outer space. I reroofed my home last year, and my cool white roof rewarded me this summer.

Governments are taking advantage of Federal programs to help home and building owners insulate, which makes it easier and cheaper to cool or heat a building.

Cities, knowing that summers are not going to get any cooler, are developing heat action plans to save lives by creating community cooling spaces in government buildings and schools.

To protect workers some cities are passing laws to ensure workers have a place to cool and rehydrate.

It is reassuring that governments work to protect their citizens. But these efforts to adapt, while essential, are band aids if we do not set our sites on going fossil fuel free by 2050. Here too, cities are leading by promoting energy efficiency and clean energy production.

We do not have to let Urban Heat Islands be another deadly step in the destruction of our common climate. We can vote and act to avoid the Tragedy of the Commons.

References: MIT Climate Portal, “Urban Heat Islands”                                                                                                     NOAA, “State of the Climate in 2023”                                                                                                                             The Weather Channel, “2023 Wasn’t Just the Hottest Year on Record”                                                                                                   USA Today, “Heat Killed a Record Number of Americans Last Year”                                                                                                  Duke Pratt School of Engineering, “For Many Urban Residents Its Even Hotter than their Weather App Says.”                   Physics.org, “Broken Temperature Records are Alarming; but it is not too late to Limit Global Warming.”                      

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