Climate Change In Urban Areas Research Articles

CO2 Emission Compensation by Tree Species in Some Urban Green Areas

Mitigating the negative impacts of climate change in urban areas has recently become essential to improving citizens’ living conditions. Trees are one of the most effective ways to attenuate the Heat Island phenomenon in cities, and numerous projects have been carried out to calculate tree ecosystem services (ES) provisioning. Among these, the Clivut European project (LIFE 18 GIC/IT/001217) developed a web app to allow citizens and the public administration to quantify the ES provided by the most common tree species. The present study aims to consider a new model to calculate the tree evapotranspiration cooling effect in the urban environment in terms of CO2-compensated emissions. The model directly converts the surface temperature change produced by tree evapotranspiration into the corresponding CO2 offset in four urban parks in two Italian cities (Bologna and Perugia). The considered parks stored 1100 t of CO2 at the time of the study, while the CO2 compensated is 860 t, showing the significance of this interpretation. As a result of the study, it can be concluded that the presented model will allow a better estimation of the potential trees’ climate change compensation and also add further functionality to the web app.

Environmental Adaptation Tools as an Approach to Meet Challenges in Urban Planning in the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia

Urban areas are facing the risk of climate change due to high temperatures, floods, storms, droughts, and the expected rise in sea levels, as a result of the rapid growth in urban and industrial activities. Cities of the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia are primarily exposed to the effects of high heat and floods after rare events of heavy rainfall. This requires the search for sustainable and appropriate planning solutions to adapt to climate change within the framework of sustainable urban planning. Urban planning can play a significant role in addressing climate change through sustainable adaptation. Therefore, the research aims to study and identify appropriate environmental tools and planning approaches that can be integrated into the urban planning methodology to adapt to climate change in urban areas in the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia. Some case studies of urban areas exposed to the risk of climate change were studied and analyzed to evaluate the planning tools and approaches adopted to confront these risks. five cases were studied. The challenges and positives of these tools and approaches were deduced. The appropriate planning approach has been selected for the privacy of Saudi cities to face the effects of climate change. The research concluded that sponge cities are the appropriate approach for Saudi cities to face the risks of floods. The suitability of the sponge cities was assessed in comparison with the case of floods in Jeddah city, the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia. The research also reached steps to integrate the requirements of converting to spongy cities in the urban planning methodology at the different planning levels

Atmospheric pollution and climate change in urban areas: a review of implemented policies

Atmospheric pollution and climate change in urban areas: a review of implemented policies

Defining Integration of Climate Adaptation Strategies into Slum Upgrading: A Literature Review.

Under the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) no.11: make cities and human settlements inclusive, safe, resilient, and sustainable; the slum is the main target for this effort. All around the world, slums are becoming the only option for low-income communities to settle within city boundaries. This paper presents a literature review aimed to provide a more detailed understanding of knowledge related to the literature on two things, namely slum upgrading and climate change adaptation of Low-Income Communities (LIC), and also on its interrelations. The literature review uses a semi-systematic methodology, using the web of science search engines combined with google scholar. We use keywords such as slum upgrading, climate adaptation, and participatory. The search engine proposed 482 papers, 75 as data and 66 public access journal articles. Out of these numbers, we narrow down the perimeters of research scope to 71 linked to SDGs. However, only 11 are relevant to urbanized areas. This finding shows that not much literature regarding these interrelations is produced. This review explains assumed interrelationships that influence each other and exist between slum upgrading on urban riversides and forms of adaptation to climate change in urban areas. The definition of slum upgrading is an integrated and comprehensive intervention aimed to improve the physical characteristics of the environment and its inhabitants quality of life, divided into in-situ and ex-situ efforts. Climate adaptation is a process rather than a program or pattern of action by the LIC in dealing with climate change impacts comprehensively and substantially within the context of social and environmental. Their interrelations of the two themes are the physical and non-physical efforts, but also on the participatory levels. Participation determines the level of climate resiliency for the LIC. Based on the descriptions of theories related to the theme of this research, there are propositions for the field study as follows. (1) slum upgrading with adaptation sensitivity to climate change will ultimately increase the resilience of low-income communities to be more prepared to face climate change. (2) The specificity of land ownership status and cultural strength can enrich locality and social closeness. (3) The level of community participation in slum upgrading affects the climate resiliency level of the LIC.

Natural cooling solution for thermally conditioning bus stops as urban climate shelters in hot areas: Experimental proof of concept

In response to the challenges posed by climate change and the growing heat patterns in cities, this study addresses the design and implementation of climate shelters integrated into public transport stops through the installation of surface radiant cooling modules. The aim is to improve the thermal comfort of short-stay users in cities in hot, dry climates. To this end, a fully sensorized thermal camera was used in a controlled setting to simulate real outdoor climate conditions and evaluate the efficacy of the radiant system. The prototype was modelled and characterized by means of in situ measurements, paying special attention to the temperature and radiant heat flux. The radiant modules maintained a temperature between 18 °C and 20 °C, even under oppressive conditions, with over 50% of the cooling flux due to radiation. The radiative performance of the prototype did not increase proportionally with increased water flow, stabilizing at high flows. The analysis of the thermal comfort index showed a decrease in feelings of discomfort of between 40% and 50% when the modules reached the set point temperature. The study shows that implementing these climate shelters in public transport stops such a bus shelters is feasible in hot, dry climates. This may be an effective strategy for mitigating the effects of climate change in urban areas and can be applied in any city that suffers from recurring heatwaves, thereby improving living conditions for city goers.

Spatial Strategies in Reducing Anthropogenic Urban Heat Island Impacts: The Case of Bolu City Center

ABSTRACT
 The growth and urbanization of cities in the world and in Turkey have resulted in changes in the micro-climate structure, and cities are heating up. The "urban heat island" (UHI) effect, which is one of the effects of climate change in urban areas, is emerging especially with the concentration of anthropogenic activities. UHI effect, in addition to meteorological factors such as temperature, humidity, solar radiation, wind, morphological factors like building heights, building typology, geographic location, urban geometry, surface material selection, etc. is caused by anthropogenic effects. In this study, UHI effect which is caused by uncontrolled urban development in Bolu/ Turkey is identified and spatial strategies are developed. As a research method, the literature assessment was first taken and the factors affecting the UHI were investigated. Finally, the spatial strategies for reducing the UHI impact are given in the conceptual framework as a proposal for urban design and a roadmap that will guide the city's development trend in the coming years. In addition, this study guides the development of holistic, environmental-conscious strategies and the reduction of the UHI impact in the Bolu city center with green infrastructure proposals with academic, non-governmental organizations (NGOs), local governments and the participation of local people.

Harvesting High-Rises: A Comprehensive Review of Urban Farming Practice and Impacts in Malaysian Buildings

Malaysia has started to implement urban agriculture in cities as urban farming is more than just growing food in the city. It also integrated into the city's economic, social, ecological, and physical infrastructure systems. Despite its numerous advantages, it also has drawbacks that may affect the building conditions and the occupants because of inefficient management practice. This implies that building managers and urban planners must take into account the implications of urban agriculture when undertaking such projects, and adapt them to suit existing building conditions. Thus, this paper aims to study the current practise and the impact of urban farming towards the occupants and the building conditions. Therefore, a literature review was carried out to reach the study's aim. The study’s findings indicate that the negative impact of urban farming on buildings and occupants can be reduced with effective maintenance practices. These results may help guide future research, which should focus on developing a more nuanced understanding of the relationship between urban agriculture and building management efficiency, allowing for the development of effective strategies for implementing urban farming that can mitigate the impacts of climate change in urban areas.

APPRAISAL OF URBANIZATION AND ITS IMPACTS ON THE ALBEDO AND CLIMATE CHANGE OF THE PUNJAB-PAKISTAN: A SPATIO-TEMPORAL ANALYSIS

The research is aimed at evaluating the process of urbanization and it’s spatio-temporal impacts on albedo and the changing climate of the Punjab. Climate change in urban areas has
 become a public focal point, as urban development in our present-day environment is one of the mostcritical aspects of human activities. The shift in the reflective properties of the surface is one of theparticular climatic consequences of urbanization which most researchers have overlooked (Albedo).Changes in urbanized land surface properties resulted in a global, regional, and local changes inbiochemical cycles and environment. This analysis aims to identify the urban land use of the 1990-2018 study area (decadal) and evaluate Albedo and Climatic Variables' trends over the selected region.This study will provide a complete code of classification in Google Earth Engine for researchers. InGoogle Earth Engine, the classification technique was utilized to detect urban areas and barren landcover types by applying coding over four images of 1990, 2000, 2010, and 2018 of Punjab Province.The Albedo maps were created in the same way for the years 2000 and 2018. Climatic maps werecreated from 1990 to 2018 by applying the Inverse Distance Weighted method in a GIS system. Therehas been an apparent increase in the urban area of Punjab Province from 1990 to 2018. The urban areahas increased from 1183.5342 km2 to 8396.4618 km2 during the study period. Results from climaticmaps showed hotspots in the areas that have undergone urbanization. Overall, the accuracy of theclassification images was 81-88 percent, which was foremost to achieve the objectives of the research.

Composite Barrier Systems for Climate Adaptation

Composite barrier systems, which are two-layer systems of materials (fine-grained material overlying coarse-grained material) of contrasting hydraulic properties, can be used to mitigate the effects of climate change in urban areas, including flooding and shrink swell deformation. Here, a series of experiments were carried out to test a range of materials, including 20-30 mm gravel, recycled crushed concrete, topsoil, and topsoil amended with water treatment residual (WTR). The consideration of waste products here aims to improve the sustainability of composite barrier systems for climate adaptation. The results indicate that WTR-amended topsoil is suitable for use as a fine-grained material in composite barrier systems owing to its enhanced water retention properties. However, while crushed concrete can be used in the coarse-grained layer to form a capillary barrier when the system is dry, once breakthrough has occurred, transmission of water through the barrier is quicker than in composite barriers with 20-30 mm gravel. As such, 20-30 mm gravel is recommended for use in the coarse-grained layer. Two large-scale, outdoor lysimeters were set-up using the recommendations derived from the column experiments. The lysimeter experiments were subjected to a series of simulated rainfall events to enable initial interpretations of composite barrier performance.

Perceived differential vulnerability and climate change-related hazards in informal settlements in Accra, Ghana: re-thinking vulnerability to climate change in urban areas

ABSTRACT Urbanisation in developing countries has co-evolved with exposure to hazards among the urban poor. Yet, current understandings of hazard vulnerability are context-specific and limiting for shedding light on perceived vulnerability to climate change in the context of informal urbanisation. The overall perception of informal dwellers on the causative and local factors that underly the processes of informal urbanisation and their hazard exposure and consequent vulnerability tends to receive less attention. Using Accra as a case and applying mixed methods, this paper analyses informal residents’ perceived vulnerability to hazards. A total of 582 households’ surveys and 3 institutional key informant interviews were conducted. The paper argues that hazard vulnerability in informal settlements is spatially differentiated and differentially perceived. The main factor associated with respondents’ perceived vulnerability was “threats of eviction”. Examination of informal dwellers’ hazard responses will improve our understanding of the influence of their perceptions on hazard responses in the context of informal urbanisation.

Developing DPSIR Framework for Managing Climate Change in Urban Areas: A Case Study in Jakarta, Indonesia

From an environmentally conscious and ecological perspective, the sustainability of cities within the effects of climate change are closely related to the wise use of resources and modifications in the ecological status of the environment. In terms of the ecological environment, the sustainability of smart cities entails meeting present and future societal demands for the environment of the water, land, and air, among others. Environmental and the ecological concerns that arise from rapid climate change and monetary developments are shown in the inconsistency between ecological assets, environmental pollution, and the destruction of nature. In this study, the authors aim to develop a strategy to deal with climate change in urban areas using Remote Sensing and the Driver-Pressure-State-Impact-Response (DPSIR) Framework with a case study in Jakarta Smart City. The DPSIR framework, which will be developed and implemented in the city of Jakarta, is a smarter and more sustainable framework that is evaluated through a systematic evaluation of sustainability with quantitative research using the entropy weight method and Partial Least Square-Structural Equation Modeling (PLS-SEM). These methods evaluate 58 representative elements of environments at the urban level, including the shortcomings of earlier research such as data availability, spatial and temporal constraints, and several related ecological indicators, such as soil pH, wind speed, air quality index as well as land changes in the spatial (spatiotemporal) time series. The results of the study show that in the metropolitan city of Jakarta, the Drivers that are related to climate change are the rate of population growth and the rate of industrial growth which, although increases people’s income and GRDP in Jakarta; it also creates Pressures, namely an increase in the amount of water consumption and in the amount of wastewater. Based on these pressures, the environmental conditions (State) of Jakarta city have undergone several environmental changes, such as loss of water supply, changes in wind speed, changes in rainfall, and increasing concentrations of the Air Pollutant Standard Index. The Impact of these three elements resulted in the increase in household and industrial water consumption, an increase in annual electricity consumption, and deteriorating air quality. Hence, the Response to these four interrelated causal variables is that the Jakarta Provincial Government must increase annual funds for the construction of urban community facilities, increase the production capacity of clean water supply, build environment-friendly wastewater treatment facilities, increase the capacity of waste processing infrastructure and transportation fleets, and educate people to use water wisely to reduce the level of water use.

Analysis of Climate Change Adaptation Program Implementation on Urban Riverside Low Income Communities, Indonesia

Climate change in urban areas has more aggravated focus as more and more humans are living near city centers. Climate change in the form of heavy rains with medium and high intensity makes floods often occur on the banks of urbanized rivers. This article aims to show the characteristics of slum riverside settlements within Yogyakarta city and the optimal quality improvement program for settlements in that place. Kampung Suranatan, Gemblakan Bawah, and Mrican-Giwangan located on the banks of the Winongo, Code, and Gajahwong rivers in the city of Yogyakarta are inhabited by low-income communities. This purposive sampling research was conducted using the snowballing method on eight informants to map the conditions, climate change adaptation program implementation as well as determine the most optimal program. The results showed that although they were often hit by floods, these three kampungs were able to survive because the communities in them were proactive in various environmental conservation movements, especially riverbanks. This proactiveness is the most important provision to become a climate-resilient kampungs.

Climate Change and Urban Citizens: The Role of Media in Publicising the Conservation of Green Spaces and Mitigation of Air Pollution

Urbanisation has become a challenge as the urban population grows while cities’ land areas, amenities, and green spaces have remained relatively unchanged or even declined. While urban areas are growing, the link between humans and nature is fading. Increasingly, cities are being affected by climate change impacts and so, the role of media in providing updated and correct knowledge to the public is becoming more valuable. Based on this theoretical ground, the research evaluated two printed Iranian newspapers’ functionality in informing the public on Tehran climate based on two main themes of air pollution and greenery spaces, spanning seven years (2007–2014). The paper evaluated the tone, style, and outline of messages publicised by the press media to explore the following questions: Which types of news are dominantly conceptualised as the significant debates and concerns on Tehran’s climatic issues? Who is mainly writing about Tehran’s climatic issues? Is the public being informed effectively on the surrounding arguments and issues by reading newspapers? As such, five self-descriptive indicators were developed: ‘Layout’ (Title, Subject, Content), ‘Message’ (Public Awareness, Educating, Alarming), ‘Contributor’ (Columnist, Researcher, Authority), ‘Spatiality’ (Local, Provincial, National, International), and ‘Allocated space’ (10% to 100%). A text analysis of Persian newspapers using a Structured Query Language (SQL) was employed to extract data. It was found that the news articles mostly covered public awareness, followed by alarming messages on climate. The findings highlighted the critical role of researchers in generating scientific news while encouraging media for disseminating more educating messages on climate change in urban areas.

Impacts of the COVID-19 confinement on air quality, the Land Surface Temperature and the urban heat island in eight cities of Andalusia (Spain)

The COVID-19 outbreak and ensuing global lockdown situation have generated a very negative impact on the world economy, but they have also lent us a unique opportunity to research and better grasp the impacts of human activity on environmental pollution and urban climates. Such studies will be of vital importance for decision-making on measures needed to mitigate the effects of climate change in urban areas, in order to turn them into resilient environments. This study looks at eight cities in the region of Andalusia (southern Spain) to comprehensively assess their environmental quality with parameters (Pm10, So2, No2, Co and O3) obtained from meteorological stations. The aim was to determine how these parameters affect the Land Surface Temperature (LST) and the Surface Urban Heat Island (SUHI), on the basis of Sentinel 3 satellite thermal images. Knowing to what extent improved air quality can reduce the LST and SUHI of cities will be essential in the context of future environmental studies on which to base sustainable decisions. The geographic situation of cities in the Mediterranean Sea basin, highly vulnerable to climate change, and the high pollution rates and high daily temperature variations of these urban areas make them particularly attractive for analyses of this sort. During the confinement period, average reductions of some environmental pollutants were achieved: So2 (−33.5%), Pm10 (−38.3%), No2 (−44.0%) and Co (−26.5%). However, the environmental variable O3 underwent an average growth of 5.9%. The LST showed an average reduction of −4.6 °C (−19.3%), while the SUHI decreased by 1.02 °C (−59.8%). These values exhibit high spatio-temporal variations between day and night, and between inland and coastal cities.

River Re-naturalization - a Nature-based Solution for Climate Change in Urban Areas

The subject of the article is river management and their reconstruction in connection with the need to adapt urban areas to climate change. The article presents a fragment of a wider research. The aim of the study is to identify and indicate the main directions of activities undertaken in the field of river reconstruction, based on the analysis of documents and literature on the subject. The case study of the Wandle River - one of the tributaries of the Thames, running through heavily urbanized areas in London, is an example of the restoration of the river. In this case, the use of natural solutions improved: flood and drought risk management, stormwater retention, inhabitants' access to the river and biodiversity of natural habitats associated with the river.

Water, energy and climate benefits of urban greening throughout Europe under different climatic scenarios

Urban greening is an effective mitigation option for climate change in urban areas. In this contribution, a European Union (EU)-wide assessment is presented to quantify the benefits of urban greening in terms of availability of green water, reduction of cooling costs and CO2 sequestration from the atmosphere, for different climatic scenarios. Results show that greening of 35% of the EU’s urban surface (i.e. more than 26,000 km2) would avoid up to 55.8 Mtons year−1 CO2 equivalent of greenhouse gas emissions, reducing energy demand for the cooling of buildings in summer by up to 92 TWh per year, with a net present value (NPV) of more than 364 billion Euro. It would also transpire about 10 km3 year−1 of rain water, turning into “green” water about 17.5% of the “blue” water that is now urban runoff, helping reduce pollution of the receiving water bodies and urban flooding. The greening of urban surfaces would decrease their summer temperature by 2.5–6 °C, with a mitigation of the urban heat island effect estimated to have a NPV of 221 billion Euro over a period of 40 years. The monetized benefits cover less than half of the estimated costs of greening, having a NPV of 1323 billion Euro on the same period. Net of the monetized benefits, the cost of greening 26,000 km2 of urban surfaces in Europe is estimated around 60 Euro year−1 per European urban resident. The additional benefits of urban greening related to biodiversity, water quality, health, wellbeing and other aspects, although not monetized in this study, might be worth such extra cost. When this is the case, urban greening represents a multifunctional, no-regret, cost-effective solution.

Economic Feasibility Analysis of Rainwater Harvesting System at Typical Public Buildings in Guangzhou

Objectives : Rainwater harvesting (RWH) is one of the most promising alternative water sources, since rainwater can easily be collected and used without significant treatment for non-potable purposes. However, the economical viability of these systems is not always assured. The objective of this study is to assess the potential water saving and financial performance of an RWH systems for a typical multifunctional building (with a rooftop area of 2,725 m<sup>2</sup>) in Guangzhou, China.Methods : The water saving and economic feasibility of the RWH system were examined using a yield after supply model for fourteen rainwater tank schemes (from 1 m<sup>3</sup> to 30 m<sup>3</sup>).Results and Discussion : According to the simulation results, an annual potable water saving of 3,923.56 m<sup>3</sup> can be achieved and a corresponding annual revenue of 11,496.04 CNY can be obtained from the RWH system. The economic viability expressed by benefit cost ratio is 1.50 and by payback periods are within 6.26 year, respectively. Sensitivity analysis indicates that the water price is the most important factor affecting the economic viability of an RWH systems. The widespread implementation of rainwater harvesting systems in the public buildings will not only lead to economic savings, but also go further to relive pressure on urban drainage systems and natural water body. Therefore, the actual benefits achieved by a RWH system will be greater than we predicted in current study.Conclusions : These results demonstrating that the application of RWH system is a very promising adaptation strategy for coping with the water crisis and climate change in urban areas of southern China.

Green Roofs and Walls Design Intended to Mitigate Climate Change in Urban Areas across All Continents

Green roofs and walls can mitigate the environmental and climate change of a city. They can decrease the urban heat island (UHI), reduce greenhouse gas emissions, fix environmental pollutants, manage urban stormwater runoff, attenuate noise, and enhance biodiversity. This paper aims to analyse green roofs and walls in the possible mitigation of urban climate change and compare it by continent. Green roofs and walls might decrease the air temperature in a city up to 11.3 °C and lower the thermal transmittance into buildings up to 0.27 W/m2 K. Urban greening might sequester up to 375 g C·m−2 per two growing seasons and increase stormwater retention up to 100%. Urban greening might attenuate city noise up to 9.5 dB. The results found green roofs and walls of varied effectiveness in ameliorating climate extremes present in host continents. Results show urban planners might focus on green roofs and walls exposure to attenuate temperatures in hotter Asian cities and advise greening in cities in Africa and Asia. European and American designers might optimise runoff water capacity of green roofs and walls systems and use greening in old buildings to improve insulation. Recommendations are made based on the study to concentrate certain designs to have greater impact on priority climate challenges, whether UHI or stormwater related. This study provides information for decision and policymakers regarding design and exposure of green roofs and walls to mitigate urban environmental and climate change.

Assessing Urban Resilience in Complex and Dynamic Systems: The RESCCUE Project Approach in Lisbon Research Site

Urban environments are challenged with unprecedented anthropogenic and natural pressures, the latter being accelerated by the growing awareness of the consequences of climate change. The concept of urban resilience has been growing in response, since it allows us to understand city behaviour as a system of systems, improving its response to extreme climate-related events. This paper presents the EU H2020 Resilience to Cope with Climate Change in Urban Areas (RESCCUE) project approach in Lisbon’s research site, regarding the Hazur® resilience assessment methodology. This methodology focuses on the interdependencies between services and infrastructures, and on the recovery times needed to restore its normal functionalities. This approach allows the integration of several work packages of the RESCCUE project, from climate change projections to adaptation strategies selection. The assessment was conducted for 19 services and 146 infrastructures, including water (supply and drainage systems), power, mobility, waste, telecommunication, environment, and the social sector. The principal climate-related hazard analysed at the Lisbon research site was urban flooding. The main result consists of a deep understanding of the relations between different services and the consequent cascade effects triggered by flooding events. Stakeholders’ involvement, beyond the project consortium, was fundamental for the success of the methodology implementation.

Sustainable Development of Urban Spaces towards Climate Protection and Adaptation to its Changes

The article concerns urban spaces highly responsible for climate change in the country, Europe, and the world. This topic is now of major importance because it reflects on every citizen of Europe and the world in that we all confront the necessity of climate protection and adaptation also in law, to climate change in urban areas. It is associated with a radical change of lifestyle in the world’s cities, mainly in terms of energy consumption and its methods of production. The research results presented in the article indicate the need to adapt current methods for slowing down adverse climate change into functional and spatial systems of urban development and their economic, legal, and social conditions affecting the pace of implementation of new technologies for climate-friendly sources such as low-carbon, energy-saving, and renewable energy. Attention was also paid to the possibility of ecological revitalization of the existing urban structure of buildings, among other things, in order to significantly reduce greenhouse gas emissions adversely affecting the climate. On the other hand, modern ideas for an Eco-City and solutions for a Green-City and Solar-City, presented in the article, implemented through sustainable development in the field of planning activities and energy management methods, can be additional indicators of the direction of sustainable development for Polish cities for climate protection and adaptation to its changes.