Capital Region Urban Heat Island Mitigation Project

The Capital Region Urban Heat Island Mitigation Project, led by Sacramento Metropolitan Air Quality Management District and CivicWell, built detailed models of the UHI effect in the Sacramento region and used them to evaluate the effectiveness of a range of heat mitigation measures. These findings have been translated into strategies and recommendations to minimize the UHI effect in the Capital Region, focusing on the transportation sector and communities most vulnerable to extreme heat.

VISIT PROJECT WEBSITE

To address the UHI challenge, the project developed an advanced model of the UHI effect in the Capital Region, at local and regional scales, and for today’s conditions as well as a 2050 land use and climate scenario. The model identifies the geographic areas with the most severe UHI effect but more importantly, it evaluates the effectiveness of different potential heat mitigation measures deployed at various scales. These findings were then distilled into transportation resilience recommendations and strategies for local governments. The project team also conducted community outreach and engagement throughout the Capital Region to understand community concerns around extreme heat, transportation needs, and priorities for neighborhood and transportation improvements.

The project’s findings and recommendations can aid local governments in their overall planning for extreme heat and heat resilience for public health, land use design, urban forestry, and more. For the transportation sector, the project findings can help to improve the resilience of roadways and pavements, as well as support the health of active transportation users. These goals are in line with the State of California’s broader goals for climate resilience planning and the California Transportation Plan 2040’s goals for a vibrant multi-modal transportation system.

Summary Report

Capital Region UHI Mitigation Plan

UHII Model Technical Report

Community Priorities Report

Communities across the Capital Region (SACOG 6-county region) are increasingly vulnerable to rising temperatures and extending heat waves, due in part to the urban heat island (UHI) effect. Exposure to excessive heat not only threatens public health, quality of life, worker productivity, and economic vitality, but also degrades the already deteriorating transportation infrastructure such as roads and train tracks. Underserved and under-resourced communities are especially burdened by extreme heat and the UHI effect, often having fewer resources to respond.

To better understand the exposures and potential cooling solutions to excessive heat across the region, the Sacramento Metropolitan Air Quality Management District (SMAQMD) and the Local Government Commission (LGC) led the Capital Region Urban Heat Island Mitigation project with Altostratus and WSP. This project identified priority strategies to reduce heat pollution and provide cooling benefits. SMAQMD and LGC engaged residents and community leaders to provide input on heat-related transportation concerns, priorities for UHI mitigation strategies, and how local jurisdictions can better serve community members living in Sacramento, Yolo, Placer, Sutter, Yuba, and El Dorado counties.

We are now calling upon community leaders to help us engage residents to create heat-resilient communities throughout the region.

The Community Engagement Toolkit is intended to be used by community leaders in the Capital Region to share about heat risks and resilience solutions with community members. The project team designed the toolkit in a manner that enables community leaders without deep expertise on extreme heat and the UHI effect to be able to successfully present the findings of the project and engage community members.

Community leaders may use the following materials to present at neighborhood association meetings and/or to family members, friends, neighbors, and colleagues, in an in-person or virtual format.

Community Engagement Toolkit Components

Tookit Introduction & Best Practices

Overview

Extreme heat is a critical issue facing the Sacramento region and is projected to worsen as climate change intensifies. The transportation sector, with its miles of highways, roads, and other paved surfaces, is a key contributor to the urban heat island (UHI) effect, but is also in turn vulnerable to extreme heat.

This project built a detailed model of the UHI effect for the Sacramento region and developed localized UHI mitigation measures and recommendations, focusing on the transportation sector and communities most vulnerable to heat. The Sacramento Metropolitan Air Quality Management District (SMAQMD) was the lead agency on the project, which was conducted between May 2018 to February 2020.

Community engagement and outreach, particularly with disadvantaged communities, was a core part of the project. The project team gathered input from vulnerable communities on their transportation needs, concerns, and priorities, with the findings to inform all aspects of the project and serve as a resource for other planning projects.

Key Outcomes

Key outcomes included a UHI model for the Sacramento region identifying areas most affected by extreme heat and analyzing the effectiveness of a range of heat mitigation measures. These findings were translated into strategies and recommendations for incorporation into current and future transportation plans, projects, design guidelines, and codes, ensuring that resilience is built into all future investments. Participating agencies gained a clear understanding of heat-related risks, transportation system vulnerabilities, community concerns, and strategies and actions to reduce UHI. The goal was to provide a blueprint to transform the transportation system from being a heat source to an urban cooling solution, reduction regional UHI while prolonging infrastructure lifespan, supporting active transportation, reducing GHG emissions, and improving air quality.

Supporting California’s Goals

This project supported California’s climate mitigation and adaptation goals as well as its vision of a resilient, multi-modal transportation system. Planning for extreme heat and UHI reduction can achieve regional cooling that benefits public health, energy savings, improved air quality, stormwater absorption, groundwater recharge, and improved public spaces.

For the transportation sector, planning for extreme heat helps to improve system-wide infrastructure resilience, reduce lifecycle maintenance and repair costs, and ensures that future investments are designed to be heat-resilient at the outset. Building heat island mitigation into local transportation documents can ensure that they become embedded into planning and decision making at local agencies.

This project also supported the California Transportation Plan 2040’s goals of a vibrant multi-modal transportation system. As temperatures increase, tree shading over walking paths, shaded bus shelters, public water fountains, cool pavements, green infrastructure, and other measures will be necessary to support alternative transportation, reduce UHI, and protect the health and safety of pedestrians, cyclists, and transit users.

Lead Agency and Partnerships

Sacramento Metropolitan Air Quality Management District: Lead agency that staffed and managed the project.
CivicWell: Sub-applicant that will help manage and staff project, conduct community outreach, and contract with consultants.
SMUD: Key partner, helped to develop concept and will provide support and technical advice.
Capital Region Climate Readiness Collaborative: Adaptation-focused collaborative in the Sacramento region that provided technical advice and support.
Placer County Air Pollution Control District: Key partner in grant, provided technical advice and support.
El Dorado County, Yolo County, City of Davis, City of Sacramento, Sacramento County: Participating agencies.