Cooler pavement, however, is far from a silver bullet when it comes to reducing the impact of heat.
It is a coating that can be applied to the surface of asphalt streets that can reflect solar radiation, rather than absorb it. Pacoima is one of the hottest neighborhoods in metro L.A. And last year, they decided to test this technology. Ten square blocks of streets, an elementary school yard and a basketball court were covered with “cool paint."
As temperatures climbed to 95 degrees on a recent afternoon in Pacoima, the surfaces with “reflective paint” were 10 degrees cooler than regular old asphalt. Preliminary research by the company that installed the paint, GAF Roofing, shows the pavement is helping to cool the ambient temperature of the whole 10-block area — and sometimes beyond — by as much as 3 degrees, possibly more.
“We’ve seen things that do work,” Torres said. “So we just keep hoping to add and stack onto that and really create a climate-resilient community.” She said the next step is to pilot “cool roofs” in the area, so residents can benefit from the cooling effect at home.
