Nature-based solutions for fast-growing city regions: A new spatial equilibrium model for complementary urban green space planning

Abstract

Urban green spaces assume a pivotal role in city-level nature-based solutions for sustainable development. Parks, street greening, and community greens play a significant role in regulating the urban microenvironment, enhancing subjective well-being, and increasing regional attractiveness. Additionally, urban greenbelts have the capacity to control urban sprawl, thereby influencing housing prices and population distribution. However, the exisiting urban models have typically addressed greenbelts and other green spaces in isolation, resulting in fragmented planning strategies. This study aims to establish a novel spatial equilibrium model that accurately assesses the socio-economic effects resulting from the combined impact of various urban green spaces. This model encompasses green infrastructure components and carefully balances their appeal against the consequent rise in housing costs. The proposed model can elucidate the latent synergistic interactions among multiple urban green policies, which enables urban policymakers to access the multifaceted impacts of greening policy combinations. and suggests that combining different urban greening policies can mitigate the negative effects of a single policy type, such as population redistribution. A case study based on empirical data from Shanghai, China, has been employed to identify the additional value associated with diverse urban green spaces. The scenario analysis suggests that combining different urban greening policies can alleviate the negative impacts of urban population relocation. These findings furnish urban planners and policymakers with novel insights to develop the distribution strategy of urban green spaces via judicious policy integration. Consequently, the proposed model furnishes a novel academic standpoint on the role of urban green spaces within the context of nature-based solution for sustainable development of metropolitan conglomerates and nascent urban agglomerations amidst the evolving post-COVID-19 environment.