Since 1970, most major U.S. cities have seen the energy demand to cool down school buildings increase by 30%, on average, according to an analysis by research group Climate Central.
In the fast-warming West, the cooling demand has skyrocketed 86%, higher than any part of the country. The nation’s biggest spike is happening in Reno, where back-to-school cooling demand has surged 320%. Other significant increases across the Mountain West are in Cheyenne, Wyoming (124%), Boise (78%), Denver (61%), Salt Lake City (55%) and Las Cruces, New Mexico (41%).
“It is too hot not to have robust, capable, ongoing air conditioning,” said Joellen Russell, a climate researcher at the University of Arizona and member of Science Moms, an advocacy group working to protect children’s future. “But a lot of our schools were built and designed back when it was significantly cooler.”
Russell said many schools are older and lack the air conditioning to keep up with rising temperatures, which can cause major consequences. According to a 2020 report by the Government Accountability Office, around 36,000 schools nationwide need to replace or update their HVAC systems.
“For kids, extreme heat affects their development and their health,” Russell said. “It can also affect behavior, and we know how hard it is for them to sit still when they're happy, you know, let alone when they're very uncomfortable, so it can impact students’ ability to concentrate and learn.”
To that end, a study by the American Economic Association found that a school year that’s 1 degree hotter outside results in a 1% drop in test scores.
This story was produced by the Mountain West News Bureau, a collaboration between Wyoming Public Media, Nevada Public Radio, Boise State Public Radio in Idaho, KUNR in Nevada, KUNC in Colorado and KANW in New Mexico, with support from affiliate stations across the region. Funding for the Mountain West News Bureau is provided in part by the Corporation for Public Broadcasting.
