Street Coolers is a community-focused organisation which aims to cool cities by 2 degrees by 2020.
Our idea is to simplify the options to cool streets and power our cities so anyone in any city, with any language and with tiny to large resources may choose the options they can afford and prefer.
We want to to share our research and demonstrate how local, simple, actions and affordable solutions can cool streets.
Why Should We Cool Streets?
Thermal image showing road and other land temperatures between 1am and 5am on Jan 2009
15.8 Million Australians who live in cities are being affected by Excess Urban Heat.
The rate of change of temperatures has increased from 0.1 degrees per decade in the 1950's to 0.7 degrees in the near future. Read more here
The impacts of excess heat in our cities:
- High Economic Costs to Our Communities:
Approx $300 million in present value terms.
See here.
- Higher Household Energy Bills:
Excess street heat is increasing energy bills in most cities, with increased energy consumption of up to 160% of the peak demand, according to ESAA. See here
- Increased Heat Related Mortality Rate:
There are correlations made between temperatures above 38ºC and increases in deaths. Environmental Health Perspectives estimate that even a one-degree reduction in peak temperature means a 25% reduction in heat related mortality in Sydney. See here.
- Decreased Property Values
Homes with greens spaces are valued at 8-20% more, and commercial properties return 7% higher rental return with increases in vegetation. See here
- Reduction in Work Efficiency
A 5ºC warming due to unmitigated climate change can lead to 1.3% reduction in GNP by 2030. See here
- Reduction in Air Quality
Research from Akbari and the Lawrence Berkeley Laboratory shows that the reduction in excess heat will improve air quality, since every 1 degree rise above 22 degrees, the incident in smog increases by 5%. See here
See a link to our Flyer here
Donations
Would you like to donate to Street Coolers? Any donations would be greatly appreciated with 100% going to fund research projects into the Urban Heat Island Effect
Why Cool Streets?
It is well-known that the rapid replacement of natural surfaces by built surfaces is the main cause of the Urban Heat Island (UHI) effect, and that the main way to combat urban heating is through increasing vegetation and tree canopy cover throughout cities.
But what about all those streets that are too narrow for trees? Street Coolers believes that light-coloured pavements in conjunction with other cooling methods such as increased vegetation and light roofs is the best way to fight the UHI in cities. Our data aims to help understand to what extent do cool roads help decrease ambient temperatures.
Click here to learn more about the Urban Heat Island Effect and what we're doing to cool our cities!
Follow us on Twitter!
-
The rise of the ‘low bill’, off the grid lifestyle https://t.co/dxoeTYqJ7z via @newscomauHQ -
RT @m_mobbs: Cut your power bills by > $27 a year @StreetCoolers - plant a tree. https://t.co/8RXk0bNhNR
Partner with us
Street Coolers' approach to living sustainably and reducing city temperatures involves increasing tree canopy with simple irrigation systems, installing cool roads and roofs, reducing the consumption of energy and water by promoting efficient appliances, and composting local food waste to provide nutrients for trees and plants.
We are engaging in several initiatives to not only collect the necessary data to help quantify the causes of UHI but to also engage the community and help raise general knowledge and awareness of the issue.
There are many opportunities for partnerships with Street Coolers' initiatives! Click here to see some of the ways we can work together to cool our streets.
Follow us on Instagram and Facebook!
