Modeling the Distribution, Impacts, and Mitigation of Anthropogenic Heat in Los Angeles

Abstract

Anthropogenic heat emissions from human energy consumption contribute to the urban heat island (UHI) effect, yet their spatiotemporal distributions and impacts remain uncertain. In this study, we develop a 100 m resolution, hourly anthropogenic heat flux (AHF) data set for Los Angeles County and use the Weather Research and Forecasting model to quantify the meteorological impacts of AHF and the heat mitigation potential of electrification and energy efficiency measures. Annual mean AHF across the county was 2.54 W m ⁻² , increasing to 9.65 W m ⁻² over urban areas, with substantial variability across both space and time. AHF increased urban mean 2 m air temperature by approximately ∼0.3°C and canopy air temperature by more than 1°C, with localized canopy warming exceeding 4°C in certain neighborhoods. Electrification and energy efficiency measures can substantially mitigate warming caused by AHF, with stronger cooling effects near highways. Under the most aggressive mitigation scenario, these measures offset more than 50% of the AHF‐induced warming in both mean 2 m air temperature and canopy air temperature across urban Los Angeles. This study confirms AHF as an important contributor to Los Angeles' UHI and demonstrates that energy‐use reductions can provide non‐trivial cooling benefits. More broadly, this study highlights the value of coupling high‐resolution AHF inventories and meteorological modeling to improve effective heat mitigation planning under future urbanization and climate change.