Southern Californians are bracing for an extreme heat wave this week. Expect highs over 100 degrees Fahrenheit in much of the region, and even hotter weather in the deserts and valleys. Meanwhile, Tuesday marked the 100th straight day of triple-digit temperatures in Phoenix, Arizona. How can Western cities adapt to extreme conditions amid climate change?
This heat wave will be dangerous for people outdoors and exerting themselves, including if they’re working or just hanging out, says Bharat Venkat, director of the UCLA Heat Lab. He encourages residents to stay inside if possible, drink as much water as they can, and check in on friends and family — especially those who are older, have disabilities, or who are forced to work without cooling mechanisms in place.
Read more: Hottest weather of the year tests people who work in heat
The most vulnerable people experience what Venkat describes as thermal inequality — they’re already facing marginalization due to their class, race, gender, and/or disability.
The heat also places an extra burden on Caifornians behind bars, Venkat points out.
“They're really on the bleeding edge of climate change and its impacts. If you think about most prisons and jails, they're made of concrete and steel. These are materials that absorb heat and slowly release it. It's like being cooked over many, many, many hours. Prisons are often located in areas that are already very hot, because people often don't want prisons in their backyard, right?”
He adds, “If you are incarcerated, you don't have control over your access to, for example, a cold shower, ice water. You frequently don't have air conditioning or fans. So you can't take steps to cool yourself down, and that makes you even more vulnerable, and you're not able to do the things you need to do to keep yourself cool.”
While cities have some heat-relieving infrastructure — such as A/C-ready public libraries and places of worship — they aren’t always effective, Venkat says.
“You have to be close enough to get to one of these [cooling] centers. You have to be mobile enough to get there. You have to be able to go and leave all of your things. So if you're unhoused and you have, say, a dog or a shopping cart full of all of your life's objects, you can’t always take that with you.”
LA, however, is thinking about establishing a “right to cooling,” which would ensure that low-income renters have A/C or another form of cooling in their homes.
Meanwhile, the state of California just passed a new regulation that would give workers mandatory heat protection, like a certain number of breaks, and access to water and cooling. However, this isn’t enough to prepare residents for triple-digit heat across consecutive days, Venkat points out.
He points to strategies not only to minimize carbon emissions, but also how people lead their everyday lives.
“That's going to mean a wholesale transformation in how we organize our societies, right? How we house people, how we think about work, what kinds of work are possible and when they're possible. It really goes down to even the most mundane everyday things. Could a grocery store be open later into the evening so folks can go out when it's a little bit cooler? Might you change your workout? Or if you have a child in school who is on the track team, maybe the track season will be over the winter, or maybe they'll run on indoor tracks.”
He continues, “We're going to see a lot of changes in the coming years, whether we like it or not. And the best way we can get ahead of it is to really anticipate and make decisions that protect those who are most vulnerable.”
Plus, as it gets hotter and drier, the risk of wildfire goes up.
“If you have extreme heat, plus wildfire smoke, you're more likely to experience asthma and other kinds of pulmonary conditions,” Venkat says. “You have to consider to yourself: Should I open my window and risk inhaling a ton of smoke, or should I keep my windows closed and risk baking alive?”
Looking to the future, Venkat says LA will still have its beautiful days. But the number of heat waves will continue, and they will intensify.