High heat days and flooding are becoming the norm in the United States. But the outcomes are deadly. People are dying at much higher rates from heat exposure.¹ Cities are flooding far more often, putting transportation on hold.² US communities need adaptation strategies that help them manage the new realities of a changed climate.

One way to help manage these new realities is to invest in public parks. Green spaces offer an opportunity to increase flooding absorbency, provide heat relief, and offer communities spaces of congregation and recreation. A $10 billion allocation to the Land and Water Conservation Fund could support flood management and mitigate the urban heat island effect. So-called green infrastructure like tree plantings, indigenous species deployment, and rain catchment systems can be cheap and quick to deploy. In a moment of increased isolation, investing in public parks also offers important opportunities for social interaction and building up community ties—which are particularly important in moments of crisis.

All across the United States, communities are experiencing a soaring number of high heat days. For example, 2026 is an El Niño year, making the world even warmer. A Natural Resources Defense Council (NRDC) analysis found that two thirds of the US population now lives in counties vulnerable to health threats from unexpectedly high summer temperatures.³ Black individuals are three times more likely to die from heat waves than their white counterparts.⁴ For many—especially in urban environments—there are few escapes. Often, especially in places that have historically been unaccustomed to extreme heat, buildings do not have air conditioning or people lack access to pools or parks to cool off. The urban heat island effect, wherein concrete and dark roofs absorb heat, exacerbates already extreme heat.⁵

Not only are extremely hot days becoming the norm, but many places are also experiencing increased flooding. This is true both in moments of hurricanes and heavy rain. According to a study by the Joint Economic Committee in 2024, the total economic burden of flooding is somewhere between $179.8 billion and $496 billion in the United States each year.⁶ According to a recent study in Nature Climate Change, “Urban and rural areas alike from Texas through Florida to Virginia [that] contain predominantly black communities [are] projected to see at least a 20 percent increase in flood risk over the next 30 years.”⁷

Neighborhoods with more green space see considerably lower death rates from extreme heat and lower flooding vulnerability.⁸ It is also a quick way to provide people with relief from flooding and the urban heat island effect. In comparison to big infrastructure projects that put new pipes in the ground to manage flooding, planting trees, planning a park, or installing water-sucking plants is cheaper and faster to deploy.

Integrating water features like splash pads for children also offers a place for families to go to cool off on hot days, especially if they do not have access to in-home air conditioning. Soccer pitches and picnic greens act as “sponges” for stormwater management.⁹ Post–Hurricane Sandy, Hoboken created ResilienCity Park—with green space, a soccer field, a playground, and basketball courts—to both create convening space but also to serve as an invisible flood management system.¹⁰

Congress should fund the Land and Water Conservation Fund with $10 billion in new earmarked funds to support managing flooding and high heat via public recreation space. They should also integrate community engagement strategies into the funds to support buy-in and build social cohesion. The Land and Water Conservation Fund is an existing program under the Department of the Interior (DOI).¹¹ It was established in 1964 with a mandate to acquire and upgrade park land via competitive and formula grants at the state and local level. Grants from the Fund can be used by states, municipalities, and tribes to acquire new land for recreation or conservation projects, or to invest in existing recreation. The state and local grants currently require a 50 percent funds match, which can make access less achievable for poorer areas. We recommend waiving the match for the additional $10 billion for heat and flooding management infrastructure in public recreation spaces.

The benefits of green space expansion would extend beyond climate adaptation. The United States is in a loneliness epidemic.¹² A neoliberal culture and suite of policies has brought on substantial social isolation and mental health problems.¹³ Creating and investing in public space offers an opportunity to increase social ties and build a sense of community.¹⁴ Parks are social infrastructure for people to play, rest, create, and learn.¹⁵ In doing so, people can build familiarity and trust, which could help bridge the widening social gaps in the United States.

Kids playing on splash pads to cool down, friends enjoying picnics under shaded trees, and teams playing soccer on pitches that act as water absorption methods—this is public adaptation in action. Public parks are a core piece of social infrastructure and opportunity for leisure for US residents at the local, state, and national level. This investment at the intersection of parks, stormwater infrastructure, and urban heat island maintenance is a pathway toward providing the capacity to do “double duty” with our infrastructure quickly.

In the longer term, we need more than just immediate capital investment projects described here and more comprehensive capital, operational, and personnel support. For instance, the National Parks Service alone has a deferred maintenance cost of $23 billion.¹⁶ Making big-scale investments in parks continues to be a way to build adaptability and social cohesion.