Cities typically use more electricity than rural areas, primarily due to the “urban heat island” effect. The buildings and other structures in cities trap and emit heat, making them warmer than neighbouring areas and forcing them to consume more power.
For instance, Delhi’s electricity consumption rises an extra 11%, or 2,600 gigawatt-hours a year, just because of the urban heat island effect, a new study finds. In monetary terms, this is an excess ₹1,400 crore spent every year.
To calculate the heat island effect, the study’s authors, led by Priyanka Kumari of Jawaharlal Nehru University, analyze eight districts of Delhi from 2012 to 2017. Satellite data is used to see how much more a district’s land-surface temperature is than that of neighbouring rural areas.
