King County, partners release strategy to mitigate impacts of extreme heat

The King County Executive Climate Office and partners are working to implement strategies laid out in the county’s first Extreme Heat Mitigation Strategy, released in summer of 2024.

Development of the Extreme Heat Mitigation Strategy began two years ago following the unprecedented heat wave in 2021 that killed over 30 people in King County, marking the deadliest climate-related disaster in the region’s history. 

The strategy includes 20 immediate and long-term actions that range from increasing urban tree canopy and expanding access to parks and green space, to creating community cooling locations, making schools more resilient to heat, updating building codes and more.

“It has been just three years since the Pacific Northwest experienced the deadly Heat Dome, a disaster made 150 times more likely because of climate change,” said King County Executive Dow Constantine. “As we continue to face the devastating effects of extreme heat, King County is taking action to confront the climate crisis and better protect our communities. Thank you to the local governments, community organizations and many partners who worked alongside King County and our Climate Office on this countywide strategy.”

“We are proud to support and invest in King County’s efforts to make their community more resilient. Because extreme heat has harmful effects on people, it’s important communities and individuals are prepared to address these risks as the climate continues to change,” said FEMA Region 10 Mitigation Division Director Kristen Meyers.

The plan outlines 20 actions for implementation by King County, local governments and other partners, including to:

• Protect and increase green space, especially in heat islands.
• Help households plant and care for trees around their home and neighborhood.
• Expand access to portable air conditioners, heat pumps and utility bill assistance.
• Create more cooling spaces in trusted community locations like senior centers.
• Make schools more resilient to heat and design heat-smart parks and playgrounds.
• Update building codes to reduce the impacts of heat and heat islands.
• Distribute multi-language informational materials on heat preparedness.
• King County announced the strategy during an event today at Glendale Forest, a new five-acre forested park in North Highline. The park provides shade in an urban neighborhood and is an example of how King County is expanding access to open space.

“I’m thrilled to see our county take such a proactive step towards protecting residents from the dangers of extreme heat. While fighting climate change remains the top priority, it’s equally important to adapt to the realities we face today and become a more resilient region,” said County Councilmember Girmay Zahilay. “I’m proud to have contributed to this effort with my 2022 legislation directing King County to develop an operational extreme weather plan for the region, and I’m excited to collaborate with Executive Constantine on this important strategy. This plan will undoubtedly save lives and improve the health and well-being of our community during these increasingly frequent heat events.”

“Extreme heat is one of the most pronounced on-the-ground realities of climate change facing our King County communities. It impacts us all, with the greatest impacts experienced among historically underserved communities — where a zip code and the color of one’s skin can determine higher heat indices,” said County Councilmember Teresa Mosqueda. “Thank you to Executive Constantine, our county departments, and community partners who drafted this extreme heat strategy — it focuses efforts on greater tree cover, affordable, energy-efficient upgrades for households at risk of displacement, trusted community locations to access cooling on hot days, and other effective ways to build community resilience to heat events.”

“We’ve seen the deadly impacts firsthand in King County, from the tragic 2021 heat dome event to increasingly frequent and intense summer hot spells that lead to hundreds of emergency department visits. This strategy provides a critically-needed plan to protect the health of our communities from the impacts of climate change and help residents adapt to these recurring heat events,” said Dr. Faisal Khan, director of Public Health — Seattle & King County.

“The Extreme Heat Mitigation Strategy unifies a lot of work we’ve been doing for years to promote equitable access to welcoming greenspaces where people and families can stay safe and cool during dangerous heat waves,” said John Taylor, director for the Department of Natural Resources. “Now there is even greater urgency for us to protect and restore natural areas that provide healthy tree canopy in communities disproportionately impacted by climate change.”

King County developed the strategy in collaboration with more than 900 participants from state and local governments, service providers, utilities, community-based organizations and frontline communities.

“With extreme heat events becoming more of the norm in this region, launching this strategy will bring the awareness and resources to help community-based organizations like ours not only to support our elders, youth, and families as individuals and in their own homes, but also to knit together preparations and plans for our community to adapt together,” said Stephanie Ung, co-executive director for Khmer Community of Seattle King County.

Hotter summers affect everyone, but the impacts are not felt equally.

Extreme heat disproportionately impacts seniors, lower-income households, people experiencing homelessness, people who do not speak English as their primary language and those with chronic health conditions.

Where a person lives or works also matters. The same person in two different parts of King County at the same time can experience as much as a 20°F difference in temperature based on geography and factors like the amount of tree canopy and impervious surfaces, according to a 2020 study.