Across 251 rapidly growing Chinese cities, researchers have uncovered a quiet inversion of urban wisdom: the trees and plants long trusted to cool dense neighborhoods may, in certain conditions, be making them more dangerous. In high-rise compact environments, vegetation still releases its moisture, but towering buildings trap it, driving up humidity and wet-bulb temperatures rather than offering relief. The study finds that urbanization patterns alone account for nearly two-thirds of this harmful trend, and that residents of dense high-rise areas face heat stress exposure 23 times greater tha
Urban high-rises amplify heat stress by trapping vegetation's humidity, study finds
Urban residents in high-rise compact cities face 23 times greater heat stress exposure intensity, with disproportionate health risks in humid climates.