Extreme Heat

Florida is expected to take five water bodies near Sarasota off its nutrient-polluted list after multiple upgrades to wastewater treatment plants and stormwater infrastructure, said one expert during a panel on red tide.

Advocates are looking to lawmakers to increase protections for outdoor workers after Florida saw a rising number of excessive heat warnings this summer.

One in four people, or 1.9 billion, experienced a five-day heat wave, at minimum, influenced by carbon pollution.

Commissioners chose to delay a long-awaited vote until next March on a controversial heat-related ordinance proposal that would protect outdoor workers in the agriculture and construction industries. The measure, if passed by commissioners, would represent the first of its kind in the South.

South Florida activists will hold a “water fast” to urge Miami−Dade commissioners to pass an ordinance to protect almost 100,000 people required to work outdoors during record high temperatures.

A recently proposed Miami-Dade County ordinance looked to offer heat-related protections for outdoor workers six months of the year. Now, changes to the proposal could mean workers receive those protections – for approximately five days a year.

New research suggests the problem traces to a historical federal program that was turned against those who needed it most, through a practice known as redlining.

“Outside of an hour and a half before sunset, nobody wants to sit there for more than five or 10 minutes even though we have this invaluable view of the ocean.”

Hundreds of communities around the country will share more than $1 billion in federal money to help them plant and maintain trees under a federal program that is intended to reduce extreme heat, benefit health and improve access to nature.

The Coalition of Immokalee Workers implores more retailers, especially Publix, to join their program aimed at protecting workers from developing heat illness.

Air quality around the world suffered in 2022 because of climate-induced extreme heat, according to a new report from the World Meteorological Association.

With heat waves, fires and storms becoming more frequent and intense, small businesses increasingly see extreme weather as their next long-term challenge.