00:00Park runs in Northern WA start early to beat the heat. At quarter to eight in Carratha it's already 30 degrees.
00:14Well this guy actually had to shave his head because he wasn't dealing with the heat.
00:18But individual responses aren't enough.
00:21Look around there's no trees or any shade anywhere. You can't avoid the sun which is not good for people of my skin complexion.
00:27Carratha Mayor Dan Scott acknowledges the Pilbara can be uncomfortable. Even on a cool day the surface temperature of the asphalt in this car park is almost 50 degrees.
00:36From now on every sort of public infrastructure project that we deliver that is outside we ensure that it's budgeted to include shade.
00:45Most cities use green and blue spaces to mitigate climate change. The natural heat sinks cool down temperatures.
00:52But maintaining these spaces requires lots of water which is scarce in semi-arid regions like the Pilbara.
01:01Further north in the tropics extreme weather has complicated climate adaptation. Darwin lost hundreds of trees in Cyclone Marcus in 2018.
01:09There was a huge reduction in trees of about 30% of our canopy cover was reduced. We're at around 35-36% and it went down to 24%.
01:19Experts say a failure to adapt effectively in the north could have catastrophic social consequences but a lot can be done at relatively low cost.
01:27More shade and buildings made out of cool reflective materials could reduce daily maximum temperatures by up to 10 degrees.
01:34We have the technology to do it. We know how to do it and we've done it in several parts of the world, you know.
01:39It's now up to decision makers at all levels of government to find ways to apply that technology where it's needed most.
01:45robi
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