00:01It's not your imagination. Cities really do stay hotter and for longer, especially at night.
00:09It's called the urban heat island effect and it's a growing problem as temperatures rise across the country.
00:16The cause? All things that make up a city.
00:19Concrete, blacktop, metal and brick.
00:23All those surfaces absorb heat much more than grass and other areas outside the city.
00:31And so the heat gets trapped in the city because you have all these buildings and it just continues to radiate all that heat towards the surface.
00:39Anderson says temperatures will continue to rise, especially in big cities.
00:44During hot, hot spells, cities, the nighttime temperatures can stay 10 to as much as 15 degrees warmer than an outlying area.
00:55Whether it's tree planting, reflective rooftops, or simply trying to shrink their dark pavement footprint,
01:01big cities are starting to make changes.
01:03Here in downtown Orlando, they're expanding their tree canopy.
01:07They're also creating green grassy areas around the city and producing more energy efficient buildings like the one behind me.
01:14New Jersey launched a $5 million grant to help cities like Camden, Trenton, and Newark cool down.
01:20Louisville, Kentucky is using federal funds to expand its tree cover.
01:25And in Dallas, Texas, urban forestry and heat mapping are guiding long-term solutions.
01:31Getting to a point where it's tough to live in these places without, you know,
01:34if you didn't have any air conditioning, it would be impossible to live in these places.
01:37For AccuWeather, I'm Leslie Hudson reporting.
Comments