EXTREME HEAT
The Burden of Extreme Heat Hits Us The Hardest
While every New Yorker feels rising temperatures, the burden of extreme heat falls hardest on communities like ours.
These communities that have been denied green space and tree canopy, surrounded by industrial facilities, with few places to find relief.
This is the result of decades of decisions about the South Bronx without the people of the South Bronx.
And it's something we're fighting to change.
The Urban Heat Island Effect
The South Bronx is a textbook example of what scientists call the urban heat island effect. This is when dense pavement, highways, and industrial infrastructure absorb and trap heat, pushing temperatures far above those in surrounding neighborhoods.
Mott Haven and Port Morris rank 45th out of 59 NYC neighborhoods in green space per capita.
We have less tree canopy than most of the city. Without trees to provide shade and without soil and grass to absorb heat, our streets can run significantly hotter than neighborhoods just a few miles away.
And the heat doesn't affect everyone equally.
A South Bronx street, devoid of any tree canopy
In the South Bronx, We Are The Most Vulnerable
The same forces that brought polluting industries and highways to our waterfront also stripped away our trees, our parks, and our shade.
The Urban Heat Island Effect
In the South Bronx, 1 in 5 school-aged children suffer from asthma. Extreme heat makes it worse. High temperatures increase ground-level ozone and airborne pollutants, triggering attacks and forcing kids indoors on the days they should be outside.
As the climate warms, it's only getting worse. Heat waves in NYC are becoming more frequent and more intense. Every degree of global warming is felt harder in neighborhoods like ours, where there's nowhere to escape the heat.
Put this all together, and you have a perfect storm. Communities already burdened by the legacies of racism suffer more when the heat waves come.
That is environmental injustice, and the toll is measured in our lives.
How We’re Combating Extreme Heat
South Bronx Unite is working on multiple fronts so that extreme heat stops being treated as a natural disaster and starts being recognized as what it is: a systemic failure.
Green Space and Tree Canopy
You can't solve the urban heat island without addressing its root cause: the absence of nature. Trees provide shade. Green space absorbs heat. Parks give people a place to breathe. Our Green Space and Land Reclamation work is directly tied to our heat resilience goals. Every tree planted in Mott Haven is a degree cooler in a heat wave, a breath of cleaner air, and a small act of justice for our community.
Neighbor gather at Brook Park Community Garden
Neighbor gather at Brook Park Community Garden
The WeAct Extreme Heat Coalition
We are active members of We Act For Environmental Justice’s Extreme Heat Coalition. We work alongside advocates across the city to push for legislation and city policy that protects people from heat — especially those most vulnerable. That means more cooling centers, smarter urban planning, and real accountability for the decisions that have made our summers so dangerous.
The Clean Air Program
Extreme heat and air quality are deeply connected. High temperatures intensify air pollution, and the South Bronx already carries a disproportionate pollution burden. We’re fighting on many fronts for the clean air we deserve.
