The compound risk of heat and Covid-19 in New York City

Riskscapes, physical and social factors, and interventions

Bibliographic Data

ID21690646
AuthorsJanelle Knox-Hayes (0000-0003-0378-5811, Massachusetts Institute of Technology, corresponding author), Juan Camilo Osorio (0009-0008-3499-648X, Pratt Institute), Natasha Stamler (0000-0002-1499-4427, Massachusetts Institute of Technology), Maria Dombrov (0009-0001-6562-0089, NASA Goddard Institute for Space Studies, Columbia University, New York, NY, USA), Rose Winer (0000-0002-7380-4726, Massachusetts Institute of Technology), Mary Hannah Smith (0009-0004-9263-4250, Massachusetts Institute of Technology), Reginald Blake (0000-0001-9974-0663, New York City College of Technology), Cynthia Rosenzweig (0000-0002-8541-2201, NASA Goddard Institute for Space Studies, Columbia University, New York, NY, USA)
Year2023
Volume28
Issue6
Pages699-727
Publication date2023-06-03
Open AccessYes
TypeARTICLE
VenueLocal Environment (JOURNAL)
Journal identifiersISSN: 1354-9839 • E-ISSN: 1469-6711
PublisherInforma UK Limited (PUBLISHER • GB)
DOI10.1080/13549839.2023.2187362
OpenAlexW4366140939
LanguageEN
References cited84

Climate change is disrupting the fundamental conditions of human life and exacerbating existing inequity by placing further burdens on communities that are already vulnerable. Risk exposure varies by where people live and work. In this article, we examine the spatial overlap of the compound risks of COVID-19 and extreme heat in New York City. We assess the relationship between socio-demographic and natural, built and social environmental characteristics, and the spatial correspondence of COVID-19 daily case rates across three pandemic waves. We use these data to create a compound risk index combining heat, COVID-19, density and social vulnerability. Our findings demonstrate that the compound risk of COVID-19 and heat are public health and equity challenges. Heat and COVID-19 exposure are influenced by natural, built, and social environmental factors, including access to mitigation infrastructure. Socio-demographic characteristics are significant indicators of COVID-19 and heat exposure and of where compound vulnerability exists. Using GIS mapping, we illustrate how COVID-19 risk geographies change across the three waves of the pandemic and the particular impact of vaccinations before the onset of the third wave. We, then, use our compound risk index to assess heat interventions undertaken by the City, identify neighborhoods of both adequate and inadequate coverage and provide recommendations for future interventions

Environmental health · Environmental resource management · Geography · Pandemic · Political science · Psychological intervention · Public health · Social vulnerability · Socioeconomics · Sociology · Air Quality and Health Impacts · Climate Change and Health Impacts · Environmental Science · Medicine · Psychology · Urban Green Space and Health

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