Abstract
Cities in Australia are experiencing unprecedented levels of urban overheating, which has caused a significant impact on the country’s socioeconomic environment. This article provides a comprehensive review on urban overheating, its impact on health, energy, economy, and the heat mitigation potential of a series of strategies in Australia. Existing studies show that the average urban heat island (UHI) intensity ranges from 1.0 °C to 13.0 °C. The magnitude of urban overheating phenomenon in Australia is determined by a combination of UHI effects and dualistic atmospheric circulation systems (cool sea breeze and hot desert winds). The strong relation between multiple characteristics contribute to dramatic fluctuations and high spatiotemporal variabilities in urban overheating. In addition, urban overheating contributes to serious impacts on human health, energy costs, thermal comfort, labour productivity, and social behaviour. Evidence suggest that cool materials, green roofs, vertical gardens, urban greenery, and water-based technologies can significantly alleviate the UHI effect, cool the ambient air, and create thermally balanced cities. Urban greenery, especially trees, has a high potential for mitigation. Trees and hedges can reduce the average maximum UHI by 1.0 °C. The average maximum mitigation performance values of green roofs and green walls are 0.2 °C and 0.1 °C, respectively. Reflective roofs and pavements can reduce the average maximum UHI by 0.3 °C. In dry areas, water has a high cooling potential. The average maximum cooling potential using only one technology is 0.4 °C. When two or more technologies are used at the same time, the average maximum UHI drop is 1.5 °C. The mitigation strategies identified in this article can help the governments and other stakeholders manage urban heating in the natural and built environment, and save health, energy, and economic costs.
Highlights
The history of urbanisation is often defined as the history of human development
Urban overheating is generally the consequence of the urban heat island (UHI) effect, a local phenomenon caused by city characteristics, building and paving materials, anthropogenic heat released by vehicle exhausts and building energy use, and the loss of natural features [5]
The UHI effect is a key phenomenon of local climate change, wherein the temperatures in inner cities are usually higher than the sorrounding rural areas
Summary
The history of urbanisation is often defined as the history of human development. In the past two centuries, the urban population increased more than 100 times [1]. Advanced technologies and strategies have been developed to mitigate the UHI effect and manage urban heat. The implementation of mitigation techniques and strategies, such as urban greening, green roofs, vertical gardens, cool roofs, and cool pavements, can provide a path for sustainable urban development. Against this background, the aim of this article was to provide an in-depth evidence-based review on the characteristics of urban overheating, its impacts on human health, energy and economy, and the potential of appropriate mitigation technologies and strategies in Australia. The data collected was processed, analysed, and interpreted to provide a meaningful understanding on the UHI effects, impacts, and mitigation in Australia.
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