Big cities like Toronto will warm faster than the rest of the world, says a new study.

Big cities like Toronto will warm faster than the rest of the world, says a new study.
Photo Credit: Jonathan Castell/CBC

Cities face a possible 8C increase: study

As temperatures rise around the world due to climate change, a new study predicts they will increase even more in cities. The study published in the journal Nature Climate Change says that one quarter of the world’s most populated cities could see temperatures go up by as much as 8C by 2100.

International efforts to cut greenhouse gas emissions will not be enough to mitigate temperature increases in big cities, concludes the study.
International efforts to cut greenhouse gas emissions will not be enough to mitigate temperature increases in big cities, concludes the study. © Jason Franson/Canadian Press

Faster warming in cities ‘is already happening’

“This happens because of the urbanization process in cities,” says Francisco Estrada of the Institute for Environmental Studies in the Netherlands. “In this urbanization process, you change…natural surfaces such as vegetation and water. And these surfaces are replaced with heat-trapping materials such as concrete and asphalt.

“So, this leads to higher temperatures, changes in precipitation and wind patterns in the cities. And this phenomenon is already happening. For example, between 1950s and 2015, 60 per cent of the urban population experienced warming twice as large as the world average.”

Listen

‘Really serious warming’

The study projects that by 2050, cities could warm 2C more than the rest of the planet. “So, we have really serious warming happening in the largest cities around the world,” says Estrada.

He concludes that cities should be taking local action to lower temperatures such as encouraging the installation of green roofs, and cool pavement. He says these are easier to enact than are international agreements to mitigate climate change, and they can have quick benefits.

In any case, Estrada says action on both the international and urban fronts is urgently needed.

Categories: Environment & Animal Life, International, Internet, Science & Technology, Society
Tags: , , , ,

Do you want to report an error or a typo? Click here!

For reasons beyond our control, and for an undetermined period of time, our comment section is now closed. However, our social networks remain open to your contributions.