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As temperatures rise and tree cover plummets, the fastest-warming urban heat island in the United States is drawing international concern – and it is in Kentucky.
The Guardian recently profiled Louisville’s growing problem. Because of the way surfaces like asphalt trap heat, the Kentucky city is often significantly hotter than its surroundings. Shade from trees could lower that temperature, but studies found that Louisville may have lost 40% of its tree canopy in the past 15 years.
Louisville has not taken the high ranking lightly and is working to increase sustainability, plant more trees and cool itself down for future generations.