Dense urban areas often suffer from the phenomenon called the “heat island effect” whereby buildings store heat dour in the daytime and the area becomes permanently hotter than surrounding less dense regions. Dark surfaces such as roads, black pavements, dark or black roofs, and cars also produce heat through their dark coloring, furthermore, cars also heat through their combustion engine, as well as air-conditioning, etc. The industry also mostly contributes to heat islands. In cities with more than one million people, the daytime temperature is an average of one to six degrees higher than in the surrounding countryside. At night, it can be up to 12 degrees hotter due to the night's natural temperature drop. The heat stored dour in the daytime through dark surfaces acts as a great heat mass storage that slowly dissipates at night, this causes summertime peak energy consumption, due to air-conditioning, which in turn creates extra greenhouse gas emissions and places even more stress on the power grid. It also results in increased water usage and of course, the kind of extreme heat being experienced worldwide in recent years causing more illness and deaths. Heat islands also cause thermal shock to aquatic life when rain occurs after a sunny summer day.

 

To help reverse this situation, you can choose a bright, reflective roof and bright landscaping materials, and where there are flat roofs, consider greening them with real grass and gardens. When landscaping, white gravel is a good option. Re-consider the use of concrete wherever possible. One ton of Co2 emissions is generated for each ton of concrete produced, due to the intense temperatures required for the production of Lime, a crucial part of concrete, as being the binding agent.

SCROLL TABLE