After attending the opening webinar series of the ProjectGUHeat last Friday, there is a follow-up batch of webinars that specifically features the results of each study city. It will be initiated by Iloilo City which is scheduled for tomorrow.

The Geospatial Assessment and Modelling of Urban Heat Islands in Philippine Cities (Project GUHeat) brings you the Iloilo City Webinar on July 21, 2020 (Tuesday) from 1:30 – 3:30 PM. The speakers will tackle the urban heat island (UHI) phenomenon in Iloilo City, discuss current and proposed initiatives and strategies to mitigate UHI, and present useful maps, tools, and other GUHeat products that can be utilized by concerned agencies and local government offices to address urban heat. The webinar will be held via Zoom and live streamed via the Project GUHeat official Facebook page (fb.com/tagaguheat).

Here below are the Presentation Topics for the webinar:

-The Whats and the Whys: Understanding the Urban Heat Island (UHI) Phenomenon in Iloilo
-Iloilo City Gov’t Initiatives in Addressing Urban Heat
-The Hows and the What Ifs: UHI Mitigation Strategies for a Cooler Environment
-Project GUHeat Products for UHI Mapping and Monitoring

Last week, I was a part of the team that conducted the survey on the urban heat in two routes identified within the Iloilo city proper. Representatives from UP Diliman who were part of Project GUHeat dropped by our office last Wednesday and explained how the survey will be done. I was not familiar with the actual functions and objectives of this project but I think this was the follow-up activity of the workshop in UPD last March that was attended by my boss Maam Dolly with Franco and Sir Keith.

Anyhow to summarize the two-day activity, two teams were tasked to the two identified routes wherein several spots are where the temperature along with other data such as air quality will be recorded in three separate times of the day. The time stamps were 9:00 to 11:00am, 2:00 to 4:00pm and 7:00 to 9:00pm. The starting point was in SM Delgado and I join the team where our route was from SM to Quezon Street then crossing to Valeria extension up to Rizal street, crossing the Central Market to Guanco street then JM Basa going to a part of Muelley Loney then to the front of the City Hall in Plaza Libertad and then walking the General Hughes street up to the last spot facing the NEDA office.

We were able to conduct the Thursday morning, ate lunch near that last spot and I went back to the bhaus to change clothes and rest a little bit. Going back to SM Delgado that afternoon, we were able to start with a few spots before it rained. The teams were then forced to cancel the survey up until the evening schedule that day as the road temperatures will surely be affected by the rain.

The next day Friday, it was forecasted to have isolated thunderstorms but were pursued to do the survey. It was cloudy that morning but no indication that it will rain and so we enjoyed that it was not scorching hot, unlike yesterday. Also, I was able to bring an umbrella this time. We finished the morning route and then met up with the other team for lunch. We had it at The Summer House in Yulo street near Midtown Hotel. I went home again to change as I was still soaked wet despite bringing three towels for my perspiration.

That afternoon survey proceeded as normal as the weather predictions proved false. It was very hot and the highest temperature that I recorded was nearing 60 degrees Celsius. I think the air temperature at that time was nearing 40. We scoured near the building shades as we went through the route.

The night survey was the last scheduled for them and so we planned to have a sumptuous dinner after the activity. It was faster this time as we already know the spots to record the temperature and we finished 30 minutes earlier. We went back to SM Delgado to wait for the other team and we decided to go to Tatoys Manokan in Atria. I gave them a few tips for their pasalubong needs and where to buy them.

Overall it was an enjoyable experience despite having to scour the city streets under the scorching sun. what I personally liked was the sharing of info and trivia of the various structures and heritage sites within our route. For example, identifying SM Delgado as the first SM mall outside Metro Manila.

I would be happy to see the results of our Iloilo City survey and to be part again of the future activities of Project GUHeat.

Lastly, here is one photo that we took before we started our Friday survey.