Biden rolled out some new measures to respond to extreme heat as temperatures soar

President Biden on Thursday announced new actions aimed at protecting communities from extreme heat, and meeting with mayors from two cities grappling with high temperatures.

Biden directed the Department of Labor to issue a hazard alert for dangerous conditions in industries like agriculture and construction, where workers face a greater risk of injury and death from extreme heat — and the department plans to boost inspections in those sectors, he said.

Biden noted that some 600 people die from extreme heat each year, and called it “outrageous” that some workers are not allowed to take water breaks in the heat.

“We’ve got to get through this crisis in the near term, and we’ve got to keep people safe,” he said.

The president also highlighted $152 million for water storage and pipelines for drought-stricken communities in western states, and $7 million for improving weather forecasts.

The announcement came on a day when Washington, D.C., is under a heat advisory. Biden was joined in a virtual meeting at the White House by the mayors of Phoenix and San Antonio to discuss the impacts of the extreme weather conditions on their cities.

Some climate activists said the measures are incremental

Phoenix Mayor Kate Gallego urged Biden during the meeting to use his authority to declare extreme heat as a disaster, which would enable cities like hers to tap into more Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) funding to help with the response.

Meanwhile, climate activists have urged Biden to use his emergency powers to take bolder measures to restrict fossil fuel production.

“Real relief won’t come until Biden confronts the culprit of deadly fossil fuels,” said Jean Su, energy justice director at the Center for Biological Diversity, who called the new announcements “incremental.”

“Biden has extraordinary powers to protect Americans from more apocalyptic heat, floods and storms by phasing out the oil and gas that are driving these disasters,” Su said.

The White House has emphasized Biden’s track record on investing in clean energy through last year’s Inflation Reduction Act.

“He’s taken more action, has been more aggressive on dealing with climate change than any other president,” press secretary Karine Jean-Pierre told reporters on Wednesday.

“He has an ambitious agenda to deal with climate change, and he’s going to move forward with that agenda,” she said.

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