In 2017 a late summer thunderstorm sat over the North Shore, and dumped four inches of rain on the Orient Heights section of East Boston, Lynn, and Winthrop. The slow moving system overwhelmed storm drains and flooded streets, backyards and basements across the area. When the flash flood waters receded, residents were left with the reality that they would have to deal with thousands of dollars worth of damage and most, if not all, that damage would not be covered by insurance.
On Thurston Street one resident lost a hot water heater, a gas furnace and all her valuables that were stored in the basement as floodwaters reached nearly three feet. On Bennington Street, several homes across from Orient Heights MBTA station were flooded and similar stories of total losses of everything in those basements were reported. When all was said and done, many of the working class residents of Eastie were forced to shell out tens of thousands of dollars to replace heating and water systems, electrical units and clean and dry their basements. Again, insurance agencies came back time and time again rejecting claims because the storm event was considered a ‘flood’ and floods are typically not covered under traditional homeowners insurance policies.
This was a storm that lasted just over an hour but many scientists agree that as the planet continues to heat, more moisture will evaporate from the seas and storms like the one in 2017 that devastated Eastie will be commonplace.
Last week, just in time for Earth Day, Mayor Michelle Wu announced the city will launch an Extreme Temperatures Response Task Force and expand cooling strategies in Eastie and four other Environmental Justice Communities. The cooling strategies announced include a new Cool Roof Grant Program, pop-up cooling support for 30 community organizations, and a community design challenge for a ‘cool bus stop’
Wu said the city’s “Heat Plan” will present 26 strategies that will help build a more just, equitable, and resilient Boston.
In addition to citywide strategies, the Heat Plan focuses on five environmental justice communities that are hotspots in Boston and experience greater burdens as temperatures increase.
Aside from Eastie the neighborhoods include Chinatown, Dorchester, Mattapan, and Roxbury.
“Extreme heat in Boston is more than an inconvenience or discomfort—it’s an urgent risk for our health, our neighborhoods, and our infrastructure,” said Mayor Michelle Wu. “Our Heat Resilience Solutions report presents Boston’s roadmap for navigating extreme heat, particularly for our environmental justice communities. This study centers people and reinforces our commitment to a Boston Green New Deal.”
Wu said the Heat Plan is a critical component of Climate Ready Boston, the City’s initiative to prepare for the near- and long-term effects of climate change, like sea level rise, coastal storms, extreme precipitation, and extreme heat. The report builds on heat preparedness work to date and outlines infrastructure and programmatic strategies that will help address the growing risks of hotter summers and extreme heat in Boston. The strategies identified in the Heat Plan will work together with the Urban Forest Plan to improve tree protection, stewardship, and new plantings for nature-based cooling solutions. The consultant team supporting the project included Sasaki, Klimaat, All Aces, and WSP.
According to studies, Boston is already experiencing the effects of climate change. Over the last decade, Boston experienced more hot days and nights than any decade in the previous 50 years.
The Heat Resilience Solutions report focuses on community-driven solutions to prepare and protect our neighborhoods for the effects of extreme heat. Climate Ready Boston completed a redlining analysis to explore neighborhood histories and systemic inequalities in Boston that resulted in certain communities facing greater burdens from climate change. The analysis showed that redlined areas are 7.5°F hotter in the day, 3.6°F hotter at night, and have 20% less parkland and 40% less tree canopy than areas designated as “A: Best”. By taking a people-centered approach to heat resilience, the City of Boston can prepare our residents and communities for extreme heat in a way that addresses systemic inequities to support a thriving, Green New Deal city.
“As the climate changes, Boston will experience increasingly higher average temperatures over time and heat waves will become more common, last longer, and be hotter,” said Reverend Mariama White-Hammond, Chief of Environment, Energy and Open Space. “Past decisions made by the public and private sector have led to increased heat risk in our environmental justice communities. This report is about doing the work to protect the entire city beginning with those communities that are bearing the biggest heat burdens.”