Communities to get tech, data help to tame extreme heat
A heat advisory is seen on a leaderboard during the FedEx St. Jude Championship at TPC Southwind on Aug. 16, 2024, in Memphis, Tennessee. James Gilbert/PGA TOUR via Getty Images
The Center for Collaborative Heat Monitoring will provide financial and technical support to communities for data collection and analysis to inform heat mitigation strategies.
Heat, once a nuisance on a sunny summer day, has escalated into a growing climate and public health crisis, as governments grapple with extreme heat’s impact on human health, infrastructure and ecosystems. A new grant opportunity looks to help communities tackle the effects of high temperatures by leveraging data.
The Center for Collaborative Heat Monitoring is now accepting applications for its nationwide heat data collection campaign, which provides communities with a stipend and technical support to help them monitor and evaluate local heat risk factors. The CCHM is an initiative under the National Integrated Heat Health Information System and the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, which announced the funding opportunity earlier this month.
“The Center for Collaborative Heat Monitoring supports essential research and data collection around extreme heat,” said NOAA Administrator Rick Spinrad in a statement. “It equips communities with the knowledge to make informed and equitable decisions about heat resilience, while engaging community members and community-based organizations throughout the process.”
Through the program, for instance, grant recipients can access heat sensor technology and assistance with data collection, analysis and modeling efforts to inform local cooling solutions.
The center will offer $10,000 to selected communities and plans to work with 10 awardees annually over the next three years. Selected applicants will collaborate with one of the center’s four regional hubs in North Carolina, Massachusetts, Arizona and Oregon to design and implement heat monitoring campaigns for their local communities.
NOAA has supported citizen-scientist projects for heat data collection since 2017 in more than 80 communities across the nation.
Last year, for instance, the Wisconsin Department of Natural Resources released a map using citizen-collected data to help identify areas in Milwaukee where heat mitigation efforts are most needed. The data collected using mobile sensors will help officials determine where to plant trees — which can help increase shade and reduce surface temperatures — set up cooling centers and establish other heat mitigation resources and services.
Applications are due Jan. 17. Applicants from rural or underserved communities or those in areas that have not conducted heat mapping yet are particularly encouraged to apply.
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