Dallas’ Roofs, Roads, and Parking Lots Make Parts of the City Up to 14 °F Hotter than Less Developed Areas, New Analysis Finds
Adoption of “Smart Surfaces” Could Reduce Peak Summer Temps by up to 6.9 ˚F in Hot Neighborhoods in Dallas, Making the City Cooler, Healthier, and More Resilient
DALLAS - A new analysis of Dallas finds that heavily urbanized areas of the city often are 14 °F hotter than less developed areas because of the abundance of dark, impervious surfaces including roofs, roadways, and parking lots. The comprehensive review of surface infrastructure in Dallas, conducted by the non-profit Smart Surfaces Coalition, concludes that the city has approximately 333,000 roofs, 20,400 lane-miles of road, and 1,400 acres of parking lots. In Dallas, these impermeable surfaces absorb up to 95% of incoming solar radiation, heating up the city dangerously during summer months and exacerbating flooding issues.
The new analysis finds that implementing “Smart Surfaces”--including trees, green stormwater infrastructure, porous and permeable pavements, and reflective roofs and roads--can reduce peak summer air temperatures by 3.1°F to 6.9°F in Dallas’ hottest neighborhoods. In response, the City of Dallas has partnered with the Smart Surfaces Coalition to identify the city’s hottest and most flood-prone pockets and to adopt smart solutions to mitigate extreme heat and stormwater flooding.
These findings reinforce the City's recent 2024 Heat Watch study with CAPA Strategies that measured a maximum temperature difference of 12 °F across the City last August, 2024. “Our goal at the Office of Environmental Quality and Sustainability (OEQS) aims to use these analyses to inform the public and city staff for strategic planning and infrastructure development across the city,” said Paul White II, OEQS Director (I).
Early this year, Dallas City Council adopted Parking Reform, led by City of Dallas Planning & Development (PDD), which allows for flexible parking minimums that in turn reduces impervious surfaces. This adoption not only "rethinks how we use space, but how to reclaim it," said Dr. Andreea Udrea, PDD's Deputy Director. "By removing stringent parking requirements, the City is unlocking land for housing, green space, and smarter infrastructure. With Parking Reform and Smart Surface strategies, Dallas is continuing to take bold steps toward a more sustainable and livable city for everyone,” Dr. Udrea added.
PDD is now leading an effort to update the City’s code through Dallas Zoning Reform, one of many proposed amendments being impervious surface coverage limitations for residential and nonresidential lots. This measure aims to reduce environmental impacts of stormwater runoff, such as flooding and heat island effect. Residents are encouraged to sign up for the City's virtual feedback session on September 9th, 11th, and 16th.
“We are proud to partner with the City of Dallas to create solutions to make the city’s urban areas cooler, healthier, and safer for all residents, especially for outdoor workers, children, seniors, athletes, and unhoused people,” said Greg Kats, CEO & Founder of the Smart Surfaces Coalition. “These strategies cut energy bills, protect vulnerable populations, and strengthen the economy.”
Dallas’s adoption of Smart Surfaces could provide local residents with $800 million in public health benefits, $520 million in energy savings, and $1.7 billion in infrastructure savings, while also reducing or offsetting 12.7 million metric tons of CO₂e and managing billions of gallons of stormwater over a 35-year period, the analysis shows.
The findings by the Smart Surfaces Coalition are powered by high resolution micrometeorological modeling and a suite of web tools launched this summer as part of the Cities for Smart Surfaces Program. The analysis reveals the transformative potential of Smart Surface interventions to reduce peak summer temperatures, lower flood risk, mitigate climate change, increase resilience, and improve public health--especially in low-income neighborhoods and communities of color.
The Cities for Smart Surfaces Program is working with 10 major cities and their surrounding metro area communities, including Dallas. Across the 10 cities--home to more than 8 million people--citywide adoption of Smart Surfaces could deliver $7.6 billion in public health benefits, $3.3 billion in electricity bill reductions, and $9.9 billion in infrastructure savings, while also reducing or offsetting 79 million metric tons of CO₂e and managing 275 billion gallons of stormwater. Expanding Smart Surfaces to the surrounding 10 metropolitan areas (impacting a total of 34 million Americans) could deliver a combined $26.6 billion in public health benefits, $10 billion in electricity bill reductions, and $34.8 billion in infrastructure savings, while also reducing or offsetting 246 million metric tons of CO₂e and managing 969 billion gallons of stormwater.
“Cities have never before had such a comprehensive, data-rich view of their surface infrastructure—or such clear guidance on where and how to act,” Kats said.
The findings come from new analysis by the Smart Surfaces Coalition, powered by high resolution micrometeorological modeling and a suite of web tools launched this summer as part of the Cities for Smart Surfaces Program. The Smart Surfaces Coalition and partners—including data partners World Resources Institute, Altostratus, Inc., Open Technologies,Trust for Public Land, and Columbia University's Sabin Center for Climate Change Law—developed tools enabling cities to more easily conduct benefit-cost analysis, geospatial analysis, and data-driven policy implementation:
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The Benefit-Cost Analysis Tool enables users to explore the financial, temperature, stormwater, and CO2e impacts from targeted Smart Surfaces adoption.
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The Decision Support Tool empowers users to understand how surfaces, heat, and hazard vulnerability are distributed across the 10 metropolitan areas.
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The Smart Surfaces Policy Tracker tool makes adopting Smart Surface policies easy and intuitive. The website features a new robust, searchable database of nearly 2,000 Smart Surface policies from all 50 US states.
"Designing healthier cities is paramount in the reality of our rapidly warming world. Outdated, heat-trapping surfaces put millions at risk — especially in underserved neighborhoods,” said Georges C. Benjamin, MD, executive director, American Public Health Association. “The Smart Surfaces Coalition’s new tools give cities the power to design healthier, cooler and more resilient communities.”
About the Smart Surfaces Coalition: The Smart Surfaces Coalition is proud to partner with 40 leading national and international organizations with a shared commitment to creating cooler, healthier, and more resilient cities by cost-effectively reducing the impacts of extreme urban heat and flooding. Smart Surfaces — reflective, porous, and green urban surfaces along with trees and solar PV — can cut peak summer citywide temperatures by 5°F or more, decrease flood risk, slow climate change, and improve public health, with the greatest improvements in low-income neighborhoods and communities of color.
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