Adding more natural areas across our towns and cities could cool them by up to 6°C during heat waves, according to new research from the University of Surrey’s Global Centre for Clean Air Research (GCARE).
Adding more natural areas across our towns and cities could cool them by up to 6°C during heat waves, according to new research from the University of Surrey’s Global Centre for Clean Air Research (GCARE).
After a year of monitoring temperatures in four distinct areas of Guildford, England, researchers found that nature-based locations—woodlands, grasslands, and lakes—were up to 3°C cooler on average than built-up areas.
Researchers from the GCARE are now urging town and city planners to focus on adding ‘green’ and ‘blue’ areas to help combat increasingly frequent annual heat waves.
