“Heat is a health and safety risk,” City of Las Cruces Sustainability Officer Lisa LaRocque told the Las Cruces City Council during its June 26 work session.
“Urban heat” – concrete and asphalt absorbing and radiating heat day and night – can increase outdoor temperatures significantly, Larocque said, “and machines and a lack of vegetation make it worse.”
Asphalt temperatures can reach 140 degrees, she said, and vehicle exhausts can reach above 150 degrees, meaning some parts of the city may be experiencing significantly hotter temperatures than others.
And because of climate change, Larocque said, maximum temperatures will continue to increase.
Currently, she said, Las Cruces experiences at least three weeks a year of temperatures higher than 100 degrees, and at least one of those weeks will see temperatures above 105 degrees. By mid-century, Larocque said, the city will have five weeks of 100-plus degree days and two weeks over 105 degrees. That will increase to 11 weeks of temperatures over 100 degrees by 2100, she said, and five weeks over 105 degrees.
Dealing with extreme heat is a particular burden for low- to moderate-income (LMI) Las Cruces residents, she said. 50 percent of LMI homes have evaporative coolers (which, without humidity, can reduce temperatures by only about 15 degrees) or fans, 62 percent are energy burdened (spending more than six percent of total income on utilities) and 30 percent are house burdened (spending more than 30 percent of income on a mortgage or paying rent).
“A lot of people need to choose to reduce their use of utilities just to be able to make it affordable to them,” Larocque said. “So, they put themselves in harm’s way by not having an ambient temperature that is healthy for them.”
The average age of residential buildings in Las Cruces is 46 years, she said, which means many have inefficient cooling equipment.
The city needs to take a more proactive approach to heat events, Larocque said, focusing on prevention instead of treating them as they occur. Changes could include requiring cooling reflective sealants on bike lanes and roads, highly reflective “cool roofs” and increasing the city’s tree canopy.
