Tulane University Journal Publishing

Harness, Greyson

Masthead

Berkowitch, Merrill

English

The Uncertain Future of Foreign Terrorist Fighters in SDF Custody

Shore, Hailey A.

15 E37.1.SHORE.FINAL (DO NOT DELETE) 2/20/2024 1:34 PM 
  
RECENT DEVELOPMENT 
151 
More Trees, Please! An Arboreal Solution to 
New Orleans’ Record-Setting Heat  
Hailey A. Shore* 
It’s no mystery the Big Easy is getting hotter. Sadly, New Orleans 
faced record-setting temperatures the summer of 2023. With forty-eight 
more days of temperatures above the ninetieth percentile than there were 
fifty years ago,1 the impacts of climate change currently pose a threat to 
New Orleanians—a threat that has been acknowledged by several local 
politicians. In summer of 2023, Mayor LaToya Cantrell signed an 
Emergency Declaration due to the ongoing, unprecedented extreme heat 
in New Orleans.2 City officials emphasized that in the event of a 
hurricane, any significant power disruptions while under extreme heat 
conditions could greatly increase the risk of injury or death.3 Similarly, 
the risk of heat-related illnesses, such as heat stroke, heat exhaustion, and 
heat rash increased as temperatures in New Orleans reached record 
levels.4 In 2023, the Louisiana Department of Health reported that twenty-
five people died of heat-related illnesses in the summer.5 A week later, 
 
 * © 2024 Hailey A. Shore, J.D. Candidate 2024, Tulane University Law School; B.S. 
2021, Tulane University. I would like to thank the members and staff of the Tulane Environmental 
Law Journal for their hard work, without which the publication of this Recent Development would 
not be possible.  I would also like to thank my family and friends for their love and support.  
 1. Kiara Alfonseca, One Urban Heat Island Has a Plan to Bring Residents Some Relief, 
ABC NEWS (July 29, 2023), https://abcnews.go.com/US/urban-heat-island-plan-bring-residents-
relief/story?id=101606531.  
 2. City of New Orleans Issues Emergency Declaration for Excessive Heat, CITY OF NEW 
ORLEANS, OFF. OF HOMELAND SEC. & EMERGENCY PREPAREDNESS, NOLA READY (Aug. 9, 2023, 
11:32 AM), https://ready.nola.gov/incident/summer-heat-2023/city-of-new-orleans-issues-
emergency-declaration-f/.   
 3. Id.   
 4. Heat-Related Illnesses and First Aid, U.S. DEP’T LABOR, OSHA, https://www. 
osha.gov/heat-exposure/illness-first-aid (last visited Dec. 2, 2023). 
 5. WWL STAFF, Health Department Says 25 People Have Died Due to Heat- 
Related Illness, 4WWL (Aug. 25, 2023), https://www.wwltv.com/article/news/health/25-people-
in-louisiana-have-died-from-heat-related-illness/289-4126f3ce-5ad5-4dfe-a6bf-78d9580256 
15 E37.1.SHORE.FINAL (DO NOT DELETE) 2/20/2024  1:34 PM 
152 TULANE ENVIRONMENAL LAW JOURNAL [Vol. 37:151 
Governor John Bel Edwards issued a statewide emergency due to the 
extreme heat.6 Now, the New Orleans community is faced with the 
challenge of surviving and thriving in the midst of increasingly warmer 
summers.  
It is important to note that many of the effects of New Orleans’ heat 
wave are due to human activity and can be amended by proper urban 
planning. For example, many urban spaces (including the Crescent City) 
are so-called heat islands, or areas paved with abundant asphalt or 
concrete that absorb and retain sunlight, and then slowly radiate heat back 
into the environment.7 These heat islands contribute to the stifling 
temperatures by keeping the air hotter for longer amounts of time, thereby 
worsening the heat that already afflicts these regions due to climate 
change.8  
In 2021, Climate Central issued its debut national urban heat island 
report which found that New Orleans was the worst heat island in 
America.9 The average temperature in New Orleans was about nine 
degrees Fahrenheit hotter than the surrounding rural or undeveloped land, 
with some areas of the city reaching nearly sixteen degrees Fahrenheit 
hotter than non-urban areas.10 Climate Central’s model measured the 
intensity of the heat island effect based on the different forms of land 
covers and built features within each urban area.11 One of the factors the 
group considers when estimating the intensity of a heat island is how 
densely covered the area is with trees compared to pavement or soil, and 
whether the buildings are tall and constructed closely together, as opposed 
to being shorter in height with areas of green space in between them.12   
An underlying cause of the heat island effect that afflicts New 
Orleans is the severe deforestation of the region, as trees are natural 
sources of shade and can alleviate the effects of intense sunlight.13 Climate 
 
79#:~:text=NEW%20ORLEANS%20%E2%80%94%20The%20Louisiana%20Department, 
more%20likely%20to%20work%20outdoors.  
 6. Id.  
 7. Halle Parker, If You Live in New Orleans, You Probably Live in a “Heat Island,” 
Report Says, WWNO (July 28, 2023, 9:15 AM), https://www.wwno.org/coastal-desk/2023-07-
28/if-you-live-in-new-orleans-you-probably-live-in-a-heat-island-report-says. 
 8. Id.  
 9. Id.   
 10. Halle Parker, This is Why New Orleans Suffers From the Worst Heat Island Effect in 
the U.S., NOLA.COM (July 26, 2021), https://www.nola.com/news/environment/this-is-why-new-
orleans-suffers-from-the-worst-heat-island-effect-in-the-u/article_1aab82ba-ebc9-11eb-b9ca-
b326b8b29b89.html.  
 11. Halle Parker, supra note 7. 
 12. Id.   
 13. Id. 
15 E37.1.SHORE.FINAL (DO NOT DELETE) 2/20/2024  1:34 PM 
2024] MORE TREES, PLEASE! 153 
Central’s report reflected a worrisome trend: comparatively lower-
income areas of the city, such as Hollygrove, Tulane Avenue, Arabi, 
Algiers, and New Orleans East were all extreme hotspots.14 Despite the 
popular image of New Orleans as a town shaded by majestic live oaks, 
cypresses, and magnolia trees, over half of the seventy-two 
neighborhoods in the city have less than ten percent of tree canopy.15 The 
New Orleans Reforestation Plan was created to address this issue and 
create equitable access to the benefits of trees throughout the city.16 The 
plan created a five-year pilot project that focuses on planting trees in five 
New Orleans neighborhoods.17 The goal of this project is to create a 
community where all neighborhoods, regardless of monetary wealth or 
political power, have access to the benefits of trees.18 
The New Orleans Reforestation Plan is a step in the right direction, 
especially in a city scarred by centuries of injustice. Discriminatory 
housing practices like redlining,19 as well as other socioeconomic factors, 
restricted many minority communities to areas with fewer trees and parks, 
thereby increasing their exposure to scorching summer temperatures.20 
Another problem associated with the heat wave is higher energy costs for 
cooling residences and buildings.21 These costs could be lessened by 
increasing the city’s tree canopy, especially in low-income 
neighborhoods where air conditioning expenses are disproportionately 
high compared to high-income parts of the city.22 By releasing oxygen,23 
 
 14. Id.  
 15. LANDSCAPE ARCHITECTURE MAG., The New Orleans Reforestation Plan: Equity in the 
Urban Forest, AM. SOC’Y OF LANDSCAPE ARCHITECTS (2023), https://www.asla.org/2023awards/ 
7466.html.  
 16. Id.  
 17. Id. 
 18. Id. 
 19. Cornell Law School Legal Information Institute, Redlining definition, October 24, 
2023, https://www.law.cornell.edu/wex/redlining (defining redlining as a discriminatory practice 
that consists of the systematic denial of financial services (such as mortgages or insurance loans) 
to residents of certain areas based on their race or ethnicity. Redlining disregards an individual’s 
qualifications and creditworthiness when making the decision to refuse such services, solely based 
on the residency of such individuals in minority neighborhoods, which were deemed “hazardous” 
or “dangerous.” Beyond the discriminatory banking practice of excluding certain neighborhoods 
from financial services, redlining may also refer to the withholding of other crucial services, such 
as the construction of grocery stores and supermarkets or even healthcare services). 
 20. LANDSCAPE ARCHITECTURE MAG., supra note 15. 
 21. Id. 
 22. Id.  
 23. Joanna Mounce Stancil, The Power of One Tree—The Very Air We Breathe, USDA 
(Mar. 17, 2015), https://www.usda.gov/media/blog/2015/03/17/power-one-tree-very-air-we-
15 E37.1.SHORE.FINAL (DO NOT DELETE) 2/20/2024  1:34 PM 
154 TULANE ENVIRONMENAL LAW JOURNAL [Vol. 37:151 
trees also counteract the atmospheric effects of human activities that 
influence the climate and increase the earth’s temperature, such as 
burning fossil fuels, cutting down forests, and farming livestock.24 These 
practices release carbon dioxide (a greenhouse gas) into the atmosphere.25 
However, by adding more green to the scene in the form of trees, we can 
offset some of the destruction that certain agricultural and industrial 
procedures may cause.  
An added benefit of the Reforestation Plan and other tree-planting 
initiatives in New Orleans and other coastal communities is the storm 
protection provided by a robust tree canopy.26 Though trees can cause 
damage in storms, if they are strategically placed, they can also reduce 
structural damage by shielding strong winds.27 In a community like New 
Orleans that faces the constant threat of hurricanes, trees that shield 
vulnerable communities from damage are a wise economic choice, as well 
as an aesthetic one. For all these reasons, the Reforestation Plan is a move 
towards a safer and more equitable New Orleans. It’s time New Orleans 
heeds the call for more canopy! 
  
 
 
breathe#:~:text=Through%20a%20process%20called%20photosynthesis,and%20released%20b
y%20the%20tree.   
 24. Causes of Climate Change, EUR. COMM’N (Oct. 24, 2023), https://climate.ec.europa. 
eu/climate-change/causes-climate-change_en (last visited Dec. 2, 2023). 
 25. Id. 
 26. Id. 
 27. Storm Damage Prevention and Treatment, UNIV. OF FLA., INST. OF FOOD & AGRIC. 
SCIS. (Jan. 24, 2020), https://hort.ifas.ufl.edu/woody/stormy.shtml#:~:text=However%2C%20 
appropriately%20placed%20and%20maintained,helpful%20in%20avoiding%20some%20dama
ge. 


More Trees, Please! An Arboreal Solution to New Orleans\u27 Record-Setting Heat

Squitiro

Tulane Undergraduate Research Journal | Volume V (2024) 
Newcomb-Tulane College  
Journal Masthead 
Editor-in-Chief 
Andrew Squitiro, Office of Undergraduate Research 
Managing Editor 
Karlene Stanton, Office of Undergraduate Research 
Student Editors 
Joseph Benefiel, Psychology
Celeste Cullors, Biology and Anthrophology
Avery Danao, Public Health
Danna Hirshberg, Public Health
Alea Marks, Economics
Charlize Nguyen, Cellular Biology and Spanish
Eva Salvatierra, English and Psychology
Bailey Wong, Cellular Biology and English 
Published with the support of:
Office of Undergraduate Research 
Newcomb-Tulane College
Tulane University 
6823 St Charles Avenue 
Journal design: Andrew Squitiro Cover 
design and art: Victoria McGee
ISSN: 2333-1062 


Journal Masthead

Millan, Stan

That Old Man WOTUS: He Just Keeps Flowin\u27, Flowin\u27 Along

Lapeyre, Walter

Pipelines and Abandonment: A Closer Look at Louisiana’s Laws of Servitude and Usufruct, Application to Pipeline Related Matters, and the Need for Definitive Precedent Regarding Abandonment

Wolf, Josiah

Sprawl and Climate Catastrophe: Normative Challenges in Zoning for Decarbonization

Behrends, Okko

The Spirit of the Roman Law Re-Evaluated

Sussmane, Alexa

The Far-Right Push to Outlaw Gender-Affirming Treatment for Minors

Montemayor, Benjamin

The Need for Regulatory Modernization in Domestic LNG: Harmonizing Commercial Interests and Net-Zero Goals

Not a member yet