Simulation of Urban Growth and Urban Living Environment with Release of the Green Belt

Seongwoo Jeon,Sungdae Kang,Hyunjung Hong

doi:10.3390/su10093260

Seongwoo Jeon, Sungdae Kang + Show 1 more

Open Access

https://doi.org/10.3390/su10093260

Copy DOI

Abstract

Green belts in developing or developed countries have been released because city-center development has reached a saturation point, and the strict protections and restrictions within green belts has led to an increase in opposition from local residents and property owners. However, green belt release has led to urban growth within the associated regions and cities, resulting in an increase in the temperature and the accumulation of pollutants in the atmosphere. We intend to prove quantitatively the effect of the release of green belts at the local level based on the interactions among land cover, climate, and air quality and to provide information for policy decisions accordingly. Our simulation results show that the urban areas of Jeju and Chuncheon, in South Korea, where green belts have been completely released, will increase by up to 21.83% by 2025 and 123.93% by 2020, respectively, compared to areas that have retained green belts. The simulations also show that the surface temperature within the released region of Jeju and Chuncheon will increase by up to 0.83% by 2025 and 0.03% by 2020, respectively. The average atmospheric concentrations within the released region of Jeju and Chuncheon were modelled to increase by up to 256.93% by 2025 and 337.29% by 2020, respectively.

Highlights

Rapid urban growth and land development following industrialization and urbanization have led to overpopulation, housing shortages, traffic jams, and damage to the environment [1]
Prior to simulating urban change caused by the release of green belts, we analyzed actual observed short-term changes in land cover and air quality occurring before and after green belt releases
In Scenario 1 (SCN 1), the urban area of Jeju in 2025, including protected zones, was 146.20 km2, an increase of 64.53% compared to the urban area in 1999

Summary

Introduction

Rapid urban growth and land development following industrialization and urbanization have led to overpopulation, housing shortages, traffic jams, and damage to the environment [1]. To address these issues, the green belt system was introduced. In combination with increasing demand and pressure for community development, land use changes rapidly with the release of green belts. Urban regions released from their green belts have spread in connection with existing downtowns. The expansion of urban regions that have been released from green belts is threatening ecosystems and their associated natural services, owing to the acceleration of production activities and an energy-consumptive lifestyle within them

Methods

Results

Conclusion