Climate & Resilience


  • A close-up of baled recycled plastics
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    Courtesy of Eastman
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    Kansas county sues major plastic producers, alleging deceptive recycling messaging

    Ford County, Kansas, seeks damages, cleanup and abatement services from the companies. But defendant and trade association American Chemistry Council called the county’s claims “meritless.”

    By Megan Quinn • Dec. 4, 2024
  • An aerial view of the Manhattan skyline at sunset.
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    Nafiz Rahat via Getty Images
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    New York makes $10M available for building heating and cooling tech

    HVAC manufacturers and building owners can use the funds to develop and demonstrate cold-climate heat pumps as the state aims to reduce buildings' on-site energy consumption by 2025.

    By Nish Amarnath • Dec. 3, 2024
  • smart city, smart cities Explore the Trendline
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    jamesteohart via Getty Images
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    Trendline

    Top 5 stories from Smart Cities Dive

    From worsening climate change to a shifting transportation landscape and the housing affordability crisis, cities have their work cut out for them.

    By Smart Cities Dive staff
  • Aerial view of homes along a wide street. On the street, a truck applies a lighter-colored coating to the pavement. Traffic cones are lined up along the street.
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    Retrieved from City of Phoenix.
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    New group wants to help US cities scale up climate-resilient ‘smart surfaces’

    Exclusive access to data, funding opportunities and model ordinances to expand cool pavement, green surfaces, porous pavement and solar panels will be among the benefits for the peer learning network participants.

    By Dec. 3, 2024
  • A person in a suit and tie stands behind a partially transparent podium with a microphone attached to it.
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    Ysabelle Kempe/Smart Cities Dive
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    AI could help cities tackle climate change, but only if it solves ‘real problems’: NYC climate chief

    “We don’t need AI or big data to tell us with much greater detail how screwed we are as a city or as a planet,” Rohit Aggarwala said at Cornell Tech’s Urban Tech Summit last week.

    By Nov. 26, 2024
  • Engineers in helmets install a solar panel system on a roof.
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    anatoliy_gleb via Getty Images
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    IRS finalizes direct pay rules, increasing access to IRA’s clean energy tax credits

    Direct-pay-eligible entities like local governments, public school districts, churches and hospitals will more easily be able to jointly invest in clean energy projects under rules released Tuesday.

    By Diana DiGangi • Nov. 21, 2024
  • People sit with laptops, pens and paper around a table in a room. On the walls are posters with words written on them in different colored markers.
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    (2022). "Las Vegas heat tabletop exercise" [Photograph]. Retrieved from National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration.
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    Want a heat resilience ‘blueprint’ for your city? This federal research center can help.

    Up to 10 communities will get $10,000 each and technical support to figure out how to fund and prepare responses during heat waves.

    By Nov. 21, 2024
  • A person in a suit and red tie stands behind a podium with a microphone.
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    Win McNamee/Getty Images via Getty Images
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    ‘We’ve been here before’: What Trump’s win could mean for local climate action

    City leaders are preparing for a president who has cast doubt on the scientific consensus around climate change and threatened to rescind unspent Inflation Reduction Act dollars. 

    By Nov. 20, 2024
  • A smoky haze seen in front of the Empire State Building.
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    David Dee Delgado via Getty Images
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    New York City Employees’ Retirement System joins UN investor alliance committed to net-zero emissions

    The nation’s largest municipal public retirement system joined the United Nations-backed Net-Zero Asset Owner Alliance, committing to transitioning its investment portfolio to reach net-zero greenhouse gas emissions by 2050.

    By Zoya Mirza • Nov. 18, 2024
  • Aerial shot of roads running through a dense urban area on the waterfront
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    Jacob Boomsma via Getty Images
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    Thermal energy networks can decarbonize neighborhoods. Meet the US cities giving them a shot.

    With federal dollars, cities want to leverage heat from waste sources and the ground to move buildings away from burning fossil fuels on-site.

    By Brian Martucci • Nov. 18, 2024
  • The Como Park Conservatory in St Paul, Minn.
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    Magnus Manske. (2006). "Como Park Zoo and Conservatory-2006" [Photograph]. Retrieved from Wikimedia Commons.
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    Automation, efficiency upgrades at Minnesota zoo could save city up to $1.8M over 3 years

    Groundwater-based geothermal heat pumps and building automation systems are among the changes at St. Paul's Como Park Zoo, which a city official said accounts for about 25% of total energy use among city properties.

    By Brian Martucci • Nov. 15, 2024
  • The facade of the U.S. Department of Energy in Washington, D.C. with a reflection of the U.S. flag
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    Timothy Epple via Getty Images
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    Local decarbonization, energy efficiency projects get over $17M from DOE

    The “highly flexible” grant program allows communities to pursue a broad range of projects, from home energy efficiency rebate programs to workforce training initiatives, according to the Department of Energy.

    By Nov. 15, 2024
  • Upside down recycling cart in foreground, Boston City Hall in background
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    Cole Rosengren/Smart Cities Dive
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    Boston requests new waste and recycling ideas ahead of 2027 contract expirations

    Collection and disposal, waste prevention and recycling, data and analytics, and policy and behavior change are among the topics for which the city wants input. It reupped many existing contracts to buy more time to craft RFPs.

    By Cole Rosengren • Nov. 14, 2024
  • Four voting booths are lined up, filled with people.
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    Sarah Rice via Getty Images
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    State infrastructure ballot initiatives see mixed results

    Approved bond funding and climate resiliency-focused state ballot measures could provide new ways for municipalities to fund improvements.

    By Joe Burns • Nov. 13, 2024
  • Facing a historic drought and wildfires, New York City officials take action

    New York City residents are experiencing climate change risks that they are “not used to seeing,” Department of Environmental Protection Commissioner Rohit Aggarwala said.

    By Nov. 12, 2024
  • FirstEnergy's 1,100-MW coal-fired Fort Martin power plant in Maidsville, West Virginia, along the Monongahela River.
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    BackyardProduction via Getty Images
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    Trump taps former Rep. Lee Zeldin to lead EPA

    The Trump administration will likely roll back EPA regulations affecting fossil-fuel power plants, said the president and CEO of a trade group for owners of coal-fired plants.

    By Ethan Howland • Nov. 12, 2024
  • Two people stand next to flames in a barbecue with their hands stretched out over the fire. One person is wrapped in a blanket.
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    Go Nakamura via Getty Images
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    Heat pumps could save these Texas households money, reduce grid strain: ACEEE

    The state should focus on deploying heat pumps in homes that currently use inefficient electric resistance heaters, say the authors of a paper from the American Council for an Energy-Efficient Economy.

    By Nov. 11, 2024
  • Gavin Newsom
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    Chip Somodevilla via Getty Images
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    Trump agenda has states, advocacy groups girding for legal battles

    California, New York and Illinois are among states readying to sue the Trump administration over divisive issues such as reproductive rights, climate regulation and immigration.

    By Justin Bachman • Nov. 11, 2024
  • Tandem dump truck/snow plow ready for the next major snowfall. Mild cross processing.
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    shaunl via Getty Images
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    Sponsored by RUBICONSmartCity, now part of Routeware

    How tech can optimize snow removal for successful winter operations

    Operational efficiency for snowplow fleets is a priority for keeping roads safe and accessible, helping drivers under all weather conditions, and saving taxpayer dollars.

    Nov. 11, 2024
  • A man in a suit speaks at a lectern
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    Jacob Wallace/Smart Cities Dive
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    New York City official backs composting over codigestion, citing environmental justice concerns

    Residents across New York City are now putting their organics into curbside bins for collection. But where those organics will be processed continues to be up for debate.

    By Jacob Wallace • Nov. 8, 2024
  • President Donald Trump takes the stage during a campaign rally at the J.S. Dorton Arena on November 04, 2024 in Raleigh, North Carolina.
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    Chip Somodevilla/Getty Images via Getty Images
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    Trump win is ‘setback’ for climate protection, but clean energy advocates say progress will continue

    “Most U.S. state, local, and private sector leaders are committed to charging ahead,” said Dan Lashof, U.S. director of the World Resources Institute.

    By Robert Walton • Nov. 6, 2024
  • People crowd around a person sitting on the ground drinking water out of a plastic bottle. One person holds an umbrella over the person on the ground.
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    Andrew Harnik via Getty Images
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    Heat mapping program opens 2025 applications, offering financial and technical support

    Applications for the Center for Collaborative Heat Monitoring program are due in January, but communities that express interest by Nov. 15 can get paired up with a mentor community.

    By Nov. 4, 2024
  • Puget Sound Energy's Encogen Generating Station located next to the Bellingham District Energy Utility
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    Retrieved from Corix on October 30, 2024
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    Low-carbon district energy system launches in a Washington city’s waterfront neighborhood

    The system, which captures waste heat for districtwide heating and cooling, is expected to help the buildings served meet Washington state energy code requirements, the Port of Bellingham says.

    By Nish Amarnath • Oct. 31, 2024
  • A person leans over to look at a garden on a rooftop surrounded by city buildings
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    Tim Boyle/Getty Images via Getty Images
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    Storms send sewage into Chicago waterways. The city hopes a new green infrastructure plan can help.

    As climate change increases the city's rainfall, Illinois is requiring Chicago to revamp a decade-old plan for stormwater management with equity in mind.

    By Oct. 31, 2024
  • Two people in firefighting suits carry a hose outside. Fire and smoke is billowing in front of them.
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    mountainberryphoto via Getty Images
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    New York unveils daily wildfire risk map

    As dry weather fuels brush fires in the state, officials and researchers launched a data tool they say will get critical information to the public and firefighters more quickly.

    By Oct. 29, 2024
  • Aerial view of homes along a wide street. On the street, a truck applies a lighter-colored coating to the pavement. Traffic cones are lined up along the street.
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    Retrieved from City of Phoenix.
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    Phoenix cool pavement study shows technology tradeoffs

    The reflective coating is more effective in certain urban areas than others, Arizona State University researchers said in a report prepared for the city.

    By Oct. 28, 2024