Cool Cities: A/C Ordinances—The Hot New Trend in Fighting Extreme Heat?
Extreme heat kills more people than any other natural disaster, and heat waves are growing longer, hotter, and more frequent, due to climate change. Cities are particularly impacted because of the urban heat island effect. A climate scientist, a legal expert, and a local elected official weigh in on one possible tool local governments can bring to bear on this public health crisis: air conditioning mandates.
Extreme heat kills more people than any other natural disaster, and heat waves are growing longer, hotter, and more frequent, due to climate change. Cities are particularly impacted because climate change exacerbates the urban heat island effect. In this episode, ELI’s Cynthia Harris chats with Rachel Licker, Senior Climate Scientist at the Union of Concerned Scientists; Michael Gerrard, Professor at Columbia Law School and Faculty Director of the Sabin Center for Climate Change Law; and Councilmember Tom Hucker, from Montgomery County, MD, to learn about one possible tool cities can bring to bear on this public health crisis: air conditioning mandates.
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