A Pact Between Texas’s Formula 1 Speedway and a Tree-Hugging Nonprofit Is Turning Austin Green
The Circuit of the Americas has sponsored the planting of thousands of saplings to shade its tarmac and boost Austin’s tree canopy cover.
I spent the weekend reporting on trees and race tracks at the Formula 1 United States Grand Prix for Texas Monthly. The Austin-based circuit’s efforts to increase tree cover could not only improve on-track action but also reduce heat-related deaths in neighboring low-income and historically redlined areas.
Sweat dribbles down the necks of Formula 1’s twenty drivers as they skid across inky asphalt. North of 100 degrees, the track surface temperature is scalding enough to melt thin ribbons loose from the Pirelli tires spinning on track.
As far as Central Texas temperatures go, an 80-degree October afternoon at the Circuit of the Americas, the speedway just outside of Austin, is a mild start to the track’s weekend festivities planned around the Formula 1 U.S. Grand Prix. But sitting next to a black tarmac without shade can feel sweltering, and fans are the unfortunate bunch left red-faced.
Austin, like most U.S. cities, falls prey to the urban heat island effect. In cities with more pavement and fewer green spaces, sunlight is absorbed rather than deflected, creating a concentrated cocoon of warmth. Heat from cars, factories, and air conditioners only turns up the dial on the thermostat.
The Circuit of the Americas’ 3.42-mile tarmac track is a textbook example of a heat island. Small pockets of foliage line the perimeter, providing little protection from heat and wind. During Friday’s practice session, spectators dotting the lawn held umbrellas overhead as chrome race cars crested the hill and reflected the glinting sun. After a few minutes, fans began to look sweaty and uncomfortable, their bedazzled cowboy hats no match for the stifling heat. The perfume of gasoline, stinging spectators’ nostrils, also didn’t encourage much cooling.
But COTA is attempting to change that.
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