Many Nashville residents live in heat islands
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Temperatures have reached triple digits in Nashville this summer, but across the city, it felt even hotter.
Why it matters: Urban heat islands — urbanized areas that experience higher temperatures due to less greenery and more infrastructure like roads, buildings and parking lots — significantly harshen the impacts of extreme weather.
- The science nonprofit Climate Central analyzed UHIs in 65 major U.S. cities with 50 million residents.
- In those cities, nearly 34 million people live in environments where UHIs could raise average temperatures by at least 8°F.
Zoom in: 71% of Nashville residents live in neighborhoods that are considered heat islands.
- "The entire planet is warming due to human-caused climate change, but the built environment further amplifies both average temperatures and extreme heat in cities," per a Climate Central statement.
Between the lines: People who live in historically lower-income areas suffer disproportionately higher urban heat impacts yet are less likely to have access to air conditioning at home, work or school, the data shows.
- The housing segregation practice pushed more people of color into areas with less tree canopy cover, which can exacerbate health problems.
By the numbers: Nashville released a report last year that found the city's tree canopy was at 56% in 2021.
Yes, but: The report found the tree canopy had diminished in more urban areas of Davidson County since 2010, likely due to the concentration of new development.
What's happening: Nashville and several other cities are confronting extreme heat through efforts like special pavement coating to reflect the sun's heat instead of absorbing it.
- The city did its own heat-mapping project in 2022 to focus public efforts.
What they're saying: "In Nashville, climate change is predicted to worsen extreme heat more than any other weather threat," Kendra Abkowitz, the city's director of sustainability and resilience, tells Axios.
- "From a climate planning perspective, as well as a public health perspective, this is a priority for us."
The big picture: "This is probably one of the rare circumstances where in doing climate work, you kind of see broad support," Abkowitz says.
- "Everyone has felt what it feels like when you're in an extreme heat situation and understands how uncomfortable and dangerous that can be."