Climate & Resilience: Page 3

  • A person in a button down shirt and jacket stands in front of a bridge and city skyline.
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    Permission granted by Steve Zylius of University of California, Irvine
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    In a sea of flood-risk data, how can cities know which information to use?

    A Los Angeles County debate spotlights the uncertainty of climate-risk models. Experts weigh in on best practices for local leaders.

    By • Sept. 17, 2024
  • Aerial shot of city buildings
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    Art Wager via Getty Images
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    DOE spurs new building energy codes with another $90M

    Construction-heavy states that lack the latest energy-efficiency codes are among the focus areas for this round of federal funding, a U.S. Department of Energy official said.

    By • Sept. 16, 2024
  • smart city, smart cities Explore the Trendline➔
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    jamesteohart via Getty Images
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    Trendline

    Top 5 stories from Smart Cities Dive

    From worsening climate change to a shifting transportation landscape and the housing affordability crisis, cities have their work cut out for them.

    By Smart Cities Dive staff
  • The flag of the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency hangs outside the agency building in Washington, D.C.
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    Justin Sullivan via Getty Images
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    Want federal funds for climate-resilient projects? The EPA’s new website aims to help.

    The resource comes as experts voice concerns about communities struggling to navigate complex, often overlapping federal funding programs.

    By • Sept. 12, 2024
  • The silhouette of a process is visible where a dirt-like material flies off a conveyor belt into a large pile.
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    Justin Sullivan via Getty Images
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    Q&A

    New compost program framework offers a starting point for local officials

    Resources from two composting-focused groups and a platform to connect local leaders seek to close the knowledge gap for officials planning an organics recycling program in their community.

    By Jacob Wallace • Sept. 12, 2024
  • A cityscape of skyscrapers and commercial buildings around State Street Bridge in Chicago.
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    tunart via Getty Images
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    Retrofits more effective in cutting operational, embodied carbon emissions than new builds: study

    Notre Dame researchers analyzed over 1 million Chicago buildings. The team plans to measure buildings’ embodied carbon in most U.S. metropolitan areas by the end of 2025, a researcher said.

    By Nish Amarnath • Sept. 11, 2024
  • An aerial shot of modern office towers and Downtown Park in Bellevue, Washington on a sunny summer day.
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    halbergman via Getty Images
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    Washington hopes to advance clean building standards implementation with nearly $8M DOE grant

    The state’s Building Efficiency and Clean Operations Network project aims to train at least 60 fellows to provide energy services to building owners and operators.

    By Nish Amarnath • Sept. 10, 2024
  • A silhouette of a person wearing a hat under a bus stop on the side of the road. Behind the bus stop is a building.
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    Brandon Bell/Getty Images via Getty Images
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    Google pilots heat resilience tool in 14 US cities

    The artificial intelligence-driven tool predicts how changes in tree canopy and reflective surfaces could reduce land surface temperature across neighborhoods.

    By • Sept. 9, 2024
  • An array of solar panels create electricity at the Lightsource bp solar farm near the Anglesey village of Rhosgoch, on May 10, 2024 in Wales.
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    Christopher Furlong via Getty Images
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    Robust community engagement good for locals, renewable energy developers: Berkeley Lab

    In a first-of-its-kind survey, wind and solar developers cited community opposition and strict local siting ordinances as leading causes of project delays and cancellations.

    By Brian Martucci • Sept. 6, 2024
  • A rendering of an aerial view of a sprawling gray building surrounded by roads.
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    (2024). "South Dade Transit Operations Center - Video Rendering of the entire facility - March 24, 2024" [Video illustration]. Retrieved from Miami-Dade County/YouTube.
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    20-acre electric bus operations center under construction in South Florida

    The "largest all-electric bus maintenance and transit operations center" in the U.S. will be home to 100 articulated 60-foot buses, a county official said.

    By • Sept. 4, 2024
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    Brandon Bell via Getty Images
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    OSHA sets late December comment deadline for extreme heat standard

    The Occupational Safety and Health Administration’s proposed rule would require employers to develop heat injury and illness prevention plans, among other actions.

    By Ryan Golden • Sept. 4, 2024
  • Aerial view of rooftops in a suburban neighborhood. A street curves through the houses.
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    Haizhan Zheng via Getty Images
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    Neighborhood decarbonization pilot programs can start in California

    A new law allows natural gas utilities to electrify a neighborhood instead of replacing old gas pipelines under certain conditions.

    By • Updated Sept. 27, 2024
  • DOT headquarters in Washington, D.C., showing the name of the department.
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    Retrieved from FHWA.
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    Low-carbon materials a ‘huge opportunity’ to green the transportation sector

    The U.S. Department of Transportation is releasing $800 million for state, local and other agencies to reimburse builders for using cleaner construction products, Federal Highway Administrator Shailen Bhatt said.

    By Julie Strupp • Sept. 3, 2024
  • A woman holding a young child in a darkened room next to a fan.
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    Brandon Bell/Getty Images via Getty Images
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    Cooling is expensive, and more federal assistance is needed, advocates say

    The Low-Income Home Energy Assistance Program is “chronically underfunded,” argues a policy brief by the Natural Resources Defense Council and WE ACT for Environmental Justice. 

    By • Aug. 29, 2024
  • The financial district in Boston, seen against the Boston Harbor at sunrise showcasing a mix of contemporary and historic buildings.
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    Marcio Silva via Getty Images
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    What to know about BERDO, Boston’s building performance standards law

    While many buildings already meet 2025 emissions limits, facility managers and owners should start planning now for how they’ll meet future requirements, city officials say.

    By Joe Burns • Aug. 28, 2024
  • Large office buildings against a blue sky.
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    David Ryder/Getty Images via Getty Images
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    State, local building energy codes get makeovers with over $240M from US DOE

    Nineteen states and localities, including Seattle and New York City, got grants announced Tuesday by the Department of Energy. The agency encouraged more communities to apply by Sept. 13 for a second round of funding.

    By • Aug. 28, 2024
  • A person pushes a gurney with a person on it into a vehicle
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    John Moore via Getty Images
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    Cities assert tenants’ right to cooling in a warming world

    Grappling with fatal heat waves, local governments are passing laws that make landlords provide working air conditioning. Financial and other challenges remain, however.

    By • Aug. 27, 2024
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    Michael M. Santiago via Getty Images
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    Q&A

    Will New York City make landlords provide air conditioning? Its climate chief is optimistic.

    Coordinating any such mandate with the city's building decarbonization law requirements could reduce the burden it might create for building owners, Rohit Aggarwala explained.

    By • Aug. 26, 2024
  • Ecological energy renewable solar panel plant with urban landscape landmarks.
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    xiaoliangge/stock.adobe.com

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    Sponsored by Dow

    Resilient renewable infrastructure needs reliable materials

    Expand the possibilities of long-distance renewable energy transmission with the right materials. 

    Aug. 26, 2024
  • A person stands in between bookshelves looking up at a transparent ceiling, behind which are tall city buildings.
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    Ron Wurzer/Getty Images via Getty Images
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    Seattle libraries get $5.5M for air conditioning in FEMA grant offered post-pandemic

    The city is betting on the upgraded facilities to serve as cooling and clean-air centers to protect residents from the rising danger of extreme heat and wildfire smoke.

    By • Aug. 23, 2024
  • California Gov. Gavin Newsom and others walk past a brightly-painted electric commuter train.
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    Courtesy of Caltrain
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    2 California commuter railroads implement zero-emission trains

    Caltrain and the San Bernardino County Transportation Authority join other commuter rail lines in replacing diesel-powered trains with battery, electric or hydrogen fuel cell technologies.

    By • Aug. 22, 2024
  • View of a back alley lined with trash carts in Baltimore, with utility lines and tree branches overhead
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    peeterv via Getty Images
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    Focus on heat illness intensifies after death of Baltimore sanitation worker

    In the wake of the death of Ronald Silver II, a city employee, labor groups are calling for more heat safety protections — and fast. Pending state and federal heat standards could help.

    By Megan Quinn • Aug. 22, 2024
  • Window AC units in a large building from the outside.
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    Johan_Spinnell via Getty Images
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    Deep Dive

    An air conditioning law, the first in its region, changed tenants’ rights in this Maryland county

    Montgomery County began requiring landlords to provide AC in 2020 amid climate concerns and renter complaints. Despite a shaky start, officials say things are going smoothly now.

    By • Aug. 22, 2024
  • A person walks down a path in a forest.
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    GomezDavid via Getty Images
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    Urban forests are ‘critical but underfunded.’ A report looks at how to fix that.

    Carbon credit programs, revolving funds and partnerships with conservancies could provide some of the money needed to prevent these green spaces from degrading, the Natural Areas Conservancy says.

    By • Aug. 21, 2024
  • A child watches as people enjoy a municipal swimming pool.
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    Spencer Platt via Getty Images
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    Municipal pools are popular, but they come at a price for cities

    Cities tout the numerous benefits public pools provide. As costs to maintain, operate and staff them grow, however, funding strategies become increasingly important.

    By Karen Kroll • Aug. 21, 2024
  • New Tesla vehicles parked on a car lot
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    Justin Sullivan via Getty Images
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    More efficient electric vehicles can reduce grid stress, cut charging costs by almost a third: ACEEE

    Local governments can leverage registration fees and subsidies to encourage EV efficiency, says research published Tuesday by the American Council for an Energy-Efficient Economy.

    By Robert Walton • Aug. 20, 2024