SAN JOSE, Calif. (KGO) — The excessive heat is changing people’s lives in big and small ways.
An Associated Press poll found nearly 70% of Americans said they have been personally impacted by extremely hot weather or heat waves.
While Bay Area natives know warm weather typically lasts into October, this heat wave is excessive – especially for Alexandria Kakiva, who is expecting twins.
“Being pregnant with twins right now is absolutely insane,” Kakiva said. “It being 103 degrees today is a little ridiculous. I thought summer was over.”
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Managing how you live your life with the hot weather is no easy task, according to an Associated Press NORC Center for Public Affairs Research Poll.
Americans say extreme heat impacts many things like outdoor activities, exercise, sleep and finances.
Nearly 7 out of 10 said their electricity bills have been negatively affected by the excessive temperatures.
“The PG&E is skyrocketing, especially with the AC,” Jay Kakiva said. “We weren’t expecting to use the AC this far into the year, especially into October.”
MORE: PG&E and California lawmakers point the blame at each other for skyrocketing bills
PG&E announced a temporary reduction to electric rates in July by almost 10%, but the impact is still felt.
That’s thanks to weather shocks, the deviation of normal environmental patterns – such as heat waves.
CSU East Bay professor of Geography and Environmental Science Antonio Roman-Alcalá says the more we rely on things that negatively impact climate change, the weather shocks will only become more common.
“Air conditioning itself ironically, or sort of problematically, reinforces some of those problems,” Roman-Alcalá said. “Because as climate change is driven by our high-levels of energy use, specifically fossil fuels, air conditioners also rely on those same fuels.”
MORE: Climate change driving force behind Bay Area’s extended heat wave, experts say
As we see more of these weather shocks, there will be more income shocks as well.
A study co-authored by Santa Clara University assistant professor of Economics Victoria Xie found extreme heat causes higher default and delinquency rates – especially in low-income households.
“So, we used to think about the causality in the reverse way, ‘how does human behavior impact the environment’,” Xie said. “But now, it’s obvious that a lot of these shocks are having large impacts on our economic system.”
Residents are hoping for cooler days ahead – for themselves and their wallets.
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