Removing grass may increase urban heat, study finds
The Southern Nevada Water Authority runs what is likely the longest-running program to motivate homeowners to replace water-thirsty grass with desert landscaping, but a new study says that while the move may save water, the price could be a superheated city. In a new study, a team of researchers investigated the microclimate effects of three common landscape types in an arid region of Phoenix, Arizona. Scientists found that desert landscaping had the lowest water requirement but the highest temperatures. Air temperatures in the desert landscape plot averaged 5.4 degrees Fahrenheit higher than in the other two landscape types.
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