Development of Technical Guidance to Advance Surface and Air Temperature Mapping and Heat-health Vulnerability Mapping in Canada

    Urban heat island (UHI) effects exacerbate extreme heat risks, particularly for vulnerable populations in urban areas, as climate change intensifies the frequency and severity of heat events, resulting in serious health impacts. Surface and air temperature maps, along with heat-health vulnerability maps, are crucial tools for understanding and mitigating heat-related risks. These enable stakeholders to identify the key drivers of heat exposure, evaluate community impacts, and prioritize targeted interventions. Currently, Canada lacks a pan-Canadian approach for developing standardized surface and air temperature and heat-health vulnerability maps, which are essential for comparing heat-health exposure and vulnerability across various communities. To fill this gap, researchers at Concordia University and Toronto and Region Conservation Authority (TRCA) are leading two complementary projects, supported by the Standards Council of Canada (SCC) and Health Canada (HC). These projects aim to develop technical guidance for advancing surface and air temperature maps and heat-health vulnerability maps in Canada, focusing on identifying and recommending best practices that are adaptable and accessible for communities across the country.

    The projects will involve a comprehensive analysis of existing mapping methodologies through a systematic literature review and active engagement with subject matter experts and map users through a national workshop and multi-disciplinary steering committees to gather feedback. The final report will deliver a detailed evaluation of mapping methodologies, covering available data sources, technical requirements, temporal and spatial scales, implementation complexity, target audiences, and use cases. For surface and air temperature mapping, the study will explore methods of remote sensing, numerical models, field observations, reanalysis data, and coupled method frameworks. For heat-health vulnerability maps, factors that influence people’s vulnerability and adaptive capacity to extreme heat will be evaluated. The project emphasizes a consensus-based approach to determine practical and achievable mapping methods that may lay the foundation for a potential National Standard of Canada.