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DALLAS - The City of Dallas will collect data to map where people are most at risk during extreme heat. Summer 2023 was Earth’s hottest on record, and communities across the globe felt this heat, impacting health, infrastructure, agriculture and more. In summer 2023, 100 square miles of the city were mapped, and the remaining approximately 245 square miles of Dallas will be mapped on August 10, 2024.
Using specially designed sensors mounted on moving vehicles, community volunteers will drive
prescribed routes to record ambient temperatures and humidity during three specific times during the
day. The City of Dallas’ Office of Environmental Quality and Sustainability (OEQS) is encouraging
residents to volunteer for the annual project. Volunteers will travel through neighborhoods in the
morning, afternoon and evening on one of the hottest days of the year.
Areas in this study include Kiest Park, Mountain Creek, Pleasant Grove, Buckner Terrace, Bahama Beach Waterpark, Lakewood, Casa View, North Dallas, Far North Dallas, Cypress Waters, Northwest Dallas, and others.
Now in its 8th year, the NOAA Urban Heat Island (UHI) mapping campaign addresses extreme heat, the number one weather-related cause of death in the U.S. for the last three decades. Urban heat islands — areas with few trees and more pavement that absorbs heat — can be up to 20 degrees Fahrenheit hotter than nearby neighborhoods with more trees, grass and less black asphalt.
This data will help us advance climate mitigation, climate adaptation, environmental quality, and
climate justice goals and actions under the Comprehensive Environmental & Climate Action Plan (CECAP) and Racial Equity Plan. For example, data will support:
- CECAP Goal 1: Prioritizing areas for Weatherization
- CECAP Goal 6: Reduce the urban heat island effect and increasing green infrastructure and tree
canopy
- CECAP Goal 7: Increasing urban agriculture, Increasing the use of other smart surfaces (e.g., light
surfaces)
- CECAP Goal 8: All Dallas' Communities Breathe Clean Air: These efforts will also improve our air quality by decreasing ozone formation and reducing particulate matter
Residents can sign up to participate here.
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