Introduction
As a travelling nurse planning to relocate to Florida within a year, I am researching public health mitigation projects. Parts of the state face threats during extreme heat, like heat-related illnesses exacerbated by urban heat islands and ageing infrastructure. High temperatures can overwhelm energy, transportation and healthcare access, risking community well-being. Many areas are implementing projects to build resilience for residents like myself by mitigating these risks. Understanding these initiatives is important since I will experience Florida’s warm climate firsthand and want to strengthen my preparedness for the worsening heat hazards of climate change.
Name of Project: Cool Roof Program in Miami
Miami’s Cool Roof Program is one project that aims to lower building heat by using bright, heat-releasing roof coatings, paints and green roofs with plants. For instance, roofs may be white-painted or gardens. These changes reflect sunlight and release heat to cool roofs and attics, cutting indoor air conditioning needs (Sheridan et al., 2021). Low-income homes, clinics, schools and shelters were prioritized as occupants face high heat risks. Upgrades began with these places of special vulnerability to temperatures through reflective and emissive roof technologies.
Hazard Addressed: Extreme Heat Vulnerability in Tampa
The city of Tampa faces extreme heat hazards during summer months that worsen existing health inequities. An implemented mitigation project involved comprehensively mapping neighbourhood-level heat vulnerability based on consideration of key contributing factors like concentrations of elderly residents, preexisting medical conditions prevalence, limited accessibility to public transportation options, sparse tree canopy coverage, and areas with predominance of households facing financial hardships (Howe et al., 2019). Custom-designed resilience hubs with cooling shelters and storage of essential medical supplies and power backups were established in the most environmentally and socially vulnerable communities at the highest risk.
Potential Mitigation: Cooling Centers in Orlando
Orlando recognizes risks from rising temperatures and is exploring mitigation options like strategically locating dedicated cooling centres in vulnerable areas lacking air conditioning access. Facilities could include repurposed schools, community centres and libraries with backup power. Transport between centres and emergency rooms during excessive heat warnings would be provided (Gronlund et al., 2018). This captured runoff could then be gradually released after the storm passes, thereby avoiding stressing the energy system and reducing heat-related EMS calls.
Public Health Connection: Social Determinants of Health
Addressing gaps in cooling access targeted social factors affecting health like poverty, lack of transportation, and urban design. Well-located, accessible cooling centres may help mitigate how these social determinants exacerbate heat health threats by providing refuge from the elements per public health principles. Communities designed with passive cooling in mind through considerations such as adequate tree canopy coverage, light-coloured and reflective surface materials, and infrastructure promoting safe pedestrian and cycling accessibility are generally less prone to escalated rates of heat-related morbidity and mortality during heatwaves (Baniassadi et al., 2019). Equitable distribution of adaptive features can help protect underserved community members who face increased vulnerability to the dangerous health impacts of rising temperatures.
Conclusion
Through projects like Miami’s Cool Roof Program, establishing resilience hubs and heat outreach in Tampa, and exploring cooling centres in Orlando, communities across Florida are taking proactive steps to strengthen public health resilience against rising temperature risks exacerbated by climate change and socioeconomic inequities. Mitigation requires considering health vulnerabilities from both environmental hazards and social determinants of health. Improving connectivity to cooling infrastructure and passive building design can help reduce heat-related illness burdens on healthcare systems.
References
Baniassadi, A., Sailor, D. J., & Ban-Weiss, G. (2019). Potential energy and climate benefits of super-cool materials as a rooftop strategy. Urban Climate, p. 29, 100495. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.uclim.2019.100495
Gronlund, C. J., Sullivan, K. P., Kefelegn, Y., Cameron, L., & O’Neill, M. S. (2018). Climate change and temperature extremes: A review of municipalities’ heat- and cold-related morbidity and mortality concerns. Maturitas, 114, 54–59. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.maturitas.2018.06.002
Howe, P. D., Marlon, J. R., Wang, X., & Leiserowitz, A. (2019). Public perceptions of the health risks of extreme heat across US states, counties, and neighbourhoods. Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences of the United States of America, 116(14), 6743–6748. https://doi.org/10.1073/pnas.1813145116
Sheridan, S. C., Dixon, P., Kalkstein, A. J., & Allen, M. J. (2021). Recent Trends in Heat-Related Mortality in the United States: An Update through 2018. Weather, Climate, and Society, 13(1), 95–106. https://doi.org/10.1175/wcas-d-20-0083.1
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