LA County leaders discuss safety as UCI study shows heat disparities across county parks

With summer right around the corner, local leaders met in Compton on Tuesday to discuss ways to keep people safe as temperatures rise.

The meeting comes on the heels of a new study that shows that summertime heat in Los Angeles can create dangerous conditions in South Los Angeles more frequently than in other parts of the country.

The recent study by the University of California, Irvine shows parks and open spaces in South LA averaged 105.8 degrees during summer daytime conditions, compared with about 91.6 degrees in West LA.

According to the study, the temperature difference largely stems from what the parks are made of. Researchers discovered that parks in South LA contained more heat-retaining materials such as artificial turf, concrete and rubber. In contrast, parks in West LA are more likely to feature natural turf and vegetation.

The study also found greater access to green spaces among residents in more affluent communities than in underserved communities. For example, West Los Angeles has 117.1 hectares of parkland per 1,000 persons. Meanwhile, in South LA, that number is 9.1 hectares.

LA County's Chief Sustainability Office organized Tuesday's panel discussion at Magic Johnson Park in Compton. County leaders met with over a dozen Los Angeles County cities to discuss setting heat-mitigation goals for the future.

One of the attendees and speakers was San Fernando City Councilmember Mary Solorio. She emphasized solutions that can come from the city or local businesses.

"How do we incentivize our businesses to put canopy shade structures in the right of way of the public, so that when the public is walking in the community, they're able to enjoy it because it's cold," said Solorio.

Representatives from the Governor's office also attended. They say there is money available for cities that participate in programs to address heat. 

"Our goal, I think as cities, should be one become a champion for this climate action plan that all cities should be implementing moving forward, while also educating the public and making sure that they know what to do," Solorio said. "Giving them a plan and a roadmap on how we fix this."

The UCI study was conducted in collaboration with Chapman University and Tennessee State University.