Publication: The Guardian

UCLA Expert: Glen MacDonald: Distinguished Professor, Department of Geography; Professor, Department of Ecology and Evolutionary Biology; Director, John Muir Memorial Chair; Member, Institute of the Environment and Sustainability

Chunyu Dong: Postdoctoral Researcher, UCLA Institute of the Environment and Sustainability;  Postdoctoral Researcher, Department of Geography

Synopsis: Even as California grapples with the effects of an extremely wet winter, the threat of drought and heat lingers, especially for areas where vegetation is too sparse to blunt the dangers. The impacts are profound across these cityscapes, according to a new UCLA study that focuses specifically on Los Angeles, which also found they have a disproportionate effect on disadvantaged communities of color. 

UCLA News: “In our maps, you can see that neighborhoods in a broad area of south Los Angeles are the most impacted by the drought,” Dongsaid, noting that low-income communities of color were making the greatest sacrifices when water supplies were scarce. “If you look at the difference between drought years and non-drought years, it is communities of color in areas of Compton, Inglewood, South Central – they are the ones seeing the greatest loss of vegetation greenness,” MacDonald added.