The impact of drought on urban green space

Abstract

<p>The role of water in shaping and developing cities has been known and referred to in numerous studies in the last two decades. Urban water management encounters compelling features, including rapid urban expansion and consequent demographic change, climate change, and environmental limitations. Urban green spaces bridge the relationship between humans and nature. As the major feature of green infrastructure, urban green space (UGS) has a crucial role in cities' human health and quality of life. UGS makes cities more habitable and promotes psychological and physical health by filtering air, enhancing water quality, reducing traffic noise, and adjusting wind speed, among other benefits. One of the most important features of urban greenery is its contribution to reducing urban heat islands and cooling the city. In order to attain a water-resilient city, we need to overcome challenges associated with water scarcity, such as drought events. While the impact of drought on forestry, agriculture, and riparian corridors has already been studied, this study is one of the first to assess the effect of drought on the UGS. The main objective of this study is to find a sustainable approach toward a green, livable city under climate change by optimizing the water footprint of UGS. As the third most liveable city in the world in 2021, Adelaide city was selected as the case study. The changes in greenness and water requirement of UGS in Greater Adelaide were studied to detect the impact of drought from 2000 to 2020. The optical remote sensing techniques were employed using Landsat, MODIS, and Sentinel images. The study area's greenness and ETa time series were simulated on the Google Earth Engine platform. Preliminary results show that the water footprint of Adelaide's urban green space is the highest in December with the highest rate of heat-wave and the lowest in June.</p>