'Cooling' the city

Kuala Lumpur, Penang, Johor Baru and the administrative capital of Putrajaya are 5 ⁰ C hotter than other cities in Malaysia - that is the result of the International Council for Local Environmental Initiatives of the country. .

Kuala Lumpur is proud to have brought a whole flock of primeval forest into the city, yet it is not enough to retain the previous temperature (Photo: WTC).

The pace of rapid growth but the lack of greenery has made these places the "inner heat island" (UHI), a phenomenon when the city's surfaces absorb heat during the day and then radiate At night, the air can not be cold in the evening.

In order to help the city cool down, Malaysian authorities advised places that should not be lined with tar or stone, which are very absorbent of heat, and should not be roofed with dark tiles because of the dark color ' heating ' hot air. up while bright colors return heat to the air. Planting trees must choose the type of radiating shade, building houses must also create shade .

Malaysia also asked cities to follow the guidelines in a newly circulated book on 'cooling' policies: revising regulations to build buildings so that roofs must meet light reflection standards; urban planning and landscaping must meet the requirements for shading; sponsoring projects and competitions on ' cooling ' the city .

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