Charlotte Heat Mappers Lead Initiative To Map Heat Across The City
This summer, the Charlotte Heat Mappers, a collaborative effort comprising community organizations, nonprofits, and governmental bodies spearheaded by UNC Charlotte’s Department of Earth, Environmental and Geographical Sciences, will oversee a comprehensive community science initiative aimed at mapping variations in urban heat across the city. Selected by the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) as one of 14 U.S. communities and four international cities for its 2024 Urban Heat Island mapping campaign, Charlotte’s participation underscores a critical step in identifying areas vulnerable to extreme heat waves.
NOAA underscores that extreme heat has persistently ranked as the leading weather-related cause of mortality in the United States for the past three decades. Urban heat islands, characterized by minimal tree cover and heightened pavement that absorbs heat, can register temperatures up to 20 degrees Fahrenheit higher than neighborhoods boasting ample greenery and reduced asphalt. The burden of health risks associated with extreme heat disproportionately impacts marginalized populations, including low-income communities and communities of color. Local environmental factors, such as humidity and air pollution, exacerbate these risks. Consequently, comprehending the distribution of heat across urban landscapes serves as a linchpin for fostering safer, more resilient communities and devising equitable heat mitigation strategies.
NOAA’s heat island mapping initiative is aligned with the Biden Administration’s Justice40 agenda, which mandates that federal agencies collaborate with states and localities to ensure that 40% of the benefits derived from federal investments in climate and clean energy are directed toward disadvantaged communities. An unequivocal commitment to environmental justice constituted a pivotal criterion in evaluating applications for the 2024 heat island mapping endeavors.
Community volunteers will employ specially calibrated sensors affixed to their vehicles to traverse predetermined routes, capturing ambient temperatures and humidity levels during morning, afternoon, and evening on one of Charlotte’s hottest days of the year. CAPA Strategies, NOAA’s scientific consultant, will subsequently collate this data into comprehensive maps and reports, empowering local decision-makers, planners, and health organizations to enact measures aimed at mitigating the health impacts of extreme heat. The data from the UHI campaigns are freely accessible on the federal website HEAT.gov. Reports from previously mapped cities, such as Raleigh and Durham’s 2021 campaign, are readily available online, although Asheville’s 2023 report remains pending.
Charlotte’s mapping campaign is slated for mid-July, with community scientists slated to be recruited in May and June through a volunteer call by the Charlotte Heat Mappers. Katherine Idziorek, a UNC Charlotte urban planning researcher leading the coalition, emphasized the community-driven nature of the endeavor, stating, “Our partners are hungry to learn more about the distribution of urban heat across our city. We are very excited about the potential of this data to empower Charlotte communities and to help them advocate for solutions that will improve their health and wellbeing.” The multidisciplinary UNC Charlotte team, including researchers Matthew Eastin, Douglas Shoemaker, Michelle Zuñiga, Veronica Westendorff, and graduate research assistant Joe Wiswell, underscores the breadth of expertise supporting this critical initiative.
Past campaigns have seen cities utilize their heat island data and maps to enact tree planting strategies, disseminate information about cooling shelters, craft heat action plans, educate residents and policymakers, and spur further research.
To volunteer for the Charlotte 2024 campaign and receive updates via their monthly newsletter, interested individuals are encouraged to reach out to the UNC Charlotte Heat Mappers team. For further insights into the heat mapping campaign, individuals can follow @charlotteheatmappers on Instagram or peruse the Charlotte Heat Mappers website.