Spatial associations between racial and ethnic diversity and summer heat in the Wasatch Front (Utah, USA), 2000–2020

As urban temperatures rise from climate change, the burden of heat exposure is likely to be unequally distributed across neighborhoods. Prior research shows that heat varies based on neighborhood racial/ethnic composition, with people of color experiencing higher temperatures relative to Whites. Yet, previous studies of neighborhood racial/ethnic diversity and heat have been largely aspatial. A spatial approach is important in documenting specific geographic patterns in heat exposure and how the clustering of racial/ethnic groups relates to exposure disparities. We examined racial/ethnic diversity and summertime heat exposure in the Wasatch Front region of Utah in 2000 and 2020 ( n = 443 tracts) using Bivariate Local Indicators of Spatial Association to identify clusters, and ANOVAs to characterize differences between clusters. In both years, diverse-hot and homogeneous-cool were the most common cluster types, mapping to spatial patterns of environmental injustice and environmental privilege. Spatial patterns of diversity and heat remained similar in 2000 and 2020, with limited evidence of attenuation of those associations between periods. We found similar socioeconomic characteristics for diverse-hot relative to diverse-cool tracts and for homogeneous-hot relative to homogeneous-cool tracts, but diverse-hot tracts had lower greenness than tracts in other cluster types. Diverse tracts had a higher percentage of people of color, lower incomes and home values, and less greenness than homogeneous tracts regardless of their summertime heat. Findings underscore the need for targeted climate adaptation that addresses the spatial and racialized nature of heat exposures. Our spatial approach allows for identification of where specific interventions would be most impactful.