Janey Declares Heat Emergency In Boston, Blames Global Warming For Latest Scorcher

Boston acting major Kim Janey this week declared a heat emergency and blamed the region's latest heatwave on global warming.

“Because the health impacts of climate change are here, impacting us today, Boston is expected to experience another round of record high temperatures with hot and humid weather this week,” Janey said at a news conference Tuesday.

Scientists are generally cautious about attributing any specific weather event to climate change, but say they've seen an increasing number of record temperatures over time.

Just this week, the United Nation's International Panel on Climate Change issued a jarring report that warned of the increasing speed of global warming.

“We cannot talk about a healthy and equitable recovery without addressing our climate crisis,” Janey said.

Janey declared a heat emergency starting for Wednesday through Friday.  To help residents stay cool, the city plans to open cooling centers citywide at Youth and Family community centers from 10:30 a.m. to 6 p.m.

Janey also announced plans at the news conference to hold community meetings and survey residents online to help decide how to use its share of the $2 trillion American Rescue Plan Act.

“We want to hear from essential workers, from those who rely heavily on public transportation to get to work. We want to hear from low-income working families and communities of color, seniors, youth, and our small business owners,” Janey said, “We want to hear from everyone.”

Janey says the “Let’s Go Better” campaign will pour money into several key areas, including hunger, the opioid crisis, the racial wealth gap, homelessness, and other issues aggravated by the pandemic.

As part of the campaign, Janey also announced the formation of Boston’s Equitable Recovery Taskforce. The advisory group will coordinate suggestions from residents who participate in the campaign.