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Miami experienced record-breaking heat last summer that led to dozens of deaths. This summer, the city will have its first-ever “chief heat officer” on the job to take on the problem of helping people get relief.
Why This Matters: We can’t stop the heat but we must deal with it. Heat is the top weather- and climate-related cause of death in the U.S., and temperatures are on the rise.
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Don’t underestimate the power of the moon. Super full moons like the one last night happen when the moon is closest to Earth, and they bring higher tides. For coastal cities like Miami or Boston or Norfolk, high tides also mean an increased risk of flooding.
Why This Matters: “In short, the moon has very strong control over how we experience sea level. It doesn’t affect sea-level rise, but it can hide or exaggerate it,” writes Brian McNoldy, an atmospheric scientist at the University of Miami’s Rosenstiel School of Marine and Atmospheric Science.
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by Natasha Lasky, ODP Staff Writer Palm trees are the iconic imagery of warm coastal cities like Los Angeles and Miami. In fact, in Miami, palms make up over 55% of the city’s total tree population. Yet climate change and rising global temperatures are forcing city leaders to rethink the prominence of the palm. Miami […]
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After a year of devastating storms, yet another storm, Tropical Storm Eta, drenches and batters Florida and Cuba. The storm has moved into the Gulf of Mexico where it is expected to meander and then move north toward the Florida coast again.
Why this Matters: Eta is the first storm of 2020 to make landfall in Florida, and five named storms hit Louisiana, Hurricanes Delta, Laura, and Zeta, as well as Tropical Storms Cristobal and Marco.
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Just as Tropical Storm Cristobal prepared to make landfall in Louisiana, the Army Corps of Engineers (COE) released a plan on Saturday to spend nearly $5B to build miles of sea walls around parts of Miami that are vulnerable to storm surge and sea-level rise, local media there reported.
Why This Matters: Similar studies by the Army Corps are going on all over the country — New York City, Norfolk, Virginia, and in the Florida Keys. The feds abruptly pulled in February the COE’s plans for a sea wall for New York City without comment.
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The organizers of Super Bowl LIV at Miami’s Hard Rock Stadium have a game plan to get to zero — they want none of the big game’s expected 160,000 pounds of waste to end up in a landfill. Our friends at National Geographic reported this week that the organizers’ plan is that aluminum cups and cans (yep no plastic ones) will go to a recycling center, utensils and napkins to a compost facility, and the rest to a plant where it will be burned for energy.
Why This Matters: There is no bigger stage than the Super Bowl to send a message about reducing our trash “footprint.”
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