City officials in Melbourne, Australia have set an ambitious plan to lower the city’s core temperature by 7 degrees Fahrenheit in 15 years in order to combat the massive heat waves that have led to numerous deaths and system shutdowns.

Officials in Melbourne, Australia have set an ambitious goal to combat their severe heat waves--reduce the central city’s temperature by 7 degrees Fahrenheit in 15 years.

The plan to relieve the city of the heat island effect, where temperatures in the urban core rise above surrounding areas, includes a multi-pronged effort.

Greenery plays a big part, with the city planning to remove pavement and plant 30,000 new trees.

The 77,000 existing trees, many of which have suffered from past hot weather, have been mapped and assigned individual email addresses so that passersby can notify the city about issues in specific trees.

Officials also intend to build an underground tank system to capture storm water and use it for green space irrigation.

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