How do urban function and development level effect construction level of green infrastructure? A case study of 110 built-up areas of cities in the Yangtze River Economic Zone

Abstract

Urban green infrastructure (GI) is proposed for providing residents with welfare. However, there is little research on how to quantitatively and systematically assess the construction level of green infrastructure (CLGI), especially its relationship with urban function and development. This paper provides empirical evidence by a case study of built-up areas of 110 cities in the Yangtze River Economic Zone (YREZ) to investigate how urban characteristics affect CLGI. First, CLGI varies significantly between cities. GI waterfront level is the most dominant advantageous type, while GI allocation is the most dominant disadvantageous type. Second, most cities generally are in a slightly unbalanced or barely coordinated state between CLGI and urban development level (UDL). Subsystems of UDL and CLGI greatly influence each other, in which economic urbanization plays an almost decisive role in CLGI. Third, CLGI is the highest in most cities with cultural and scientific services as the major function especially in allocation and accessibility aspects, while the lowest in most cities with mining as the major function. Finally, this study presents a judgement model for GI priority goals and some practical implications, which is expected to facilitate evidence-based policymaking of urban planning and coordinated development of GI construction and urban characteristics.