A federal program to protect US cities against extreme heat has just evaporated

The Center for Heat Resilient Communities partnered with the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration last summer to study Laredo , Texas .

The nonprofit Rio Grande International Study Center partnered with NOAA to study the city's urban heat island effect.

The center had planned to work with 14 city governments to tailor plans for addressing urban heat.

NOAA has now defunded the research center, which was funded through the Biden administration's landmark climate law.

Researchers had planned to help communities determine who’s most at risk from rising heat.

Rural economies have more agricultural workers exposed in shade-free fields.

Some cities have higher populations of elderly people, who need extra protection because their bodies don’t handle heat as well as those of younger folks.