i-Tree Canopy Research Articles

Not population density, but city size and per capita income influence the urban forest carbon sequestration: A case of growing cities in Arkansas, USA

While urban trees provides significant ecosystem services, the impact of increasing urbanization and population on their carbon sequestration potential remains relatively underexplored in interior sprawling cities, highlighting a critical research gap amid growing urban environmental challenges. Although existing studies suggest a strongly correlation between urban forest cover and carbon sequestration, this study aims to investigate how the urban demography factors influence land cover and carbon sequestration across cities with low, medium, and high population densities. Using the i-Tree Canopy tool, we sampled 18,814 random points to estimate city land cover and carbon sequestration in Arkansas, interior state of the US. Results from the principal component analysis revealed that 74% of the variation in a city's land cover among population density classes is attributed to tree and soil cover percentages. The mean annual (1.40 ± 0.08 T ha-1) and total carbon sequestration rates (35.30 ± 5.57 T ha-1) were significantly higher in the areas with low population density due to a higher average tree cover percentage (46%). Carbon sequestration rate was negatively associated with land cover types such as impervious surfaces like buildings (r = -0.44), roads (r = -0.28), grass cover (r = -0.46), and impervious other (r = -0.53). The log-linear model with scaled variables suggested that factors such as city's size and tree cover has positive influence urban trees' annual and total carbon sequestration, while spatial distribution and per capita income negatively affect these ecosystem befits in growing cities, regardless of population density. Travel time within city may have negative impact, while decadal population change may positively impact on carbon sequestration alongside management effort. Valuing this potential urban forest carbon sequestration for emerging carbon market could provide monetary benefits to the urban communities, city managers, and policymakers, enabling the development of effective urban forest management strategies in the context of urban climate change.

Urban forest species selection for improvement of ecological benefits in Polish cities - The actual and forecast potential

Trees in cities perform important environmental functions: they produce oxygen, filter pollutants, provide habitat for wildlife, mitigate stormwater runoff, and reduce the effects of climate change, especially in terms of lowering temperatures and converting carbon dioxide from the atmosphere into stored carbon. Generally, to increase the environmental benefits of urban forests, the number of trees is increased, directly influencing the canopy coverage. However, little is known about potential of modifying the species composition of urban tree communities in order to increase ecological benefits. Planting and managing trees to increase canopy is particularly challenging in city centres, where the dense, often historic infrastructure of buildings and roads do not allow for a significant increase in greenspace. Estimations of canopy cover obtained through i-Tree Canopy analysis unveiled significant potential to increase canopy cover in historical urban areas in Polish cities from 15-34% to 31–51%. This study models the ecological benefits of urban forests in Polish cities, focusing on how different species compositions can enhance environmental functions such as carbon sequestration and pollution filtration. Two main scenarios were analyzed: one involving the addition of trees based on the most common species currently planted (“standard option” SO), and another incorporating changes to the species composition to enhance ecological benefits (“city specific option” SCO). Acer platanoides (14.5%) and Tilia cordata (11.45%) were the most frequently species of Polish cities. Betula pendula, Quercus robur, Robinia pseudoacacia, Fraxinus excelsior, Acer pseudoplatanus, Aesculus hippocastanum and Acer campestre were also common species in urban forest communities (up to 5%). The diverse range of tree species in Polish cities contributes significantly to the overall carbon sequestration potential. The results suggest that modifying species composition could significantly increase carbon sequestration rates by 47.8%–114% annually, with the city specific option (SCO) being the most effective in enhancing carbon sequestration potential. This highlights the importance of strategic species selection in urban forestry practices to maximize environmental benefits and mitigate climate change effects.

Air quality impact of natural protected areas: A case study of Sarayiçi Tavuk Forest, Edirne, Türkiye

This study investigated the regulatory ecosystem services of Sarayiçi Tavuk Forest, a natural protected urban forest in Edirne, Turkey, with a focus on its ability to improve air quality. The i-Tree Canopy Tool was used to categorise land-cover classes within the forest and assess air quality impacts using pollutant removal and carbon sequestration estimates. The results show that the Sarayiçi Tavuk Forest eliminates 5,014.68 kg/yr of pollutants, sequesters 183,000 kg/yr of carbon, and stores a total of 4,596,680 kg of carbon throughout the lifespan of its trees. The economic value of these regulatory ecosystem services is estimated at 864,177 USD annually and substantially improves air quality. The results of this study provide valuable insights for researchers, landscape managers, and policymakers involved in regional planning, decision-making, and green space improvement in cities. This study highlights the vital role of natural protected urban forests in improving air quality and underscores the need for their preservation and integration into landscape and urban planning strategies for sustainable development in response to 21st-century challenges.

Evaluation of the Contribution of Cemeteries to Urban Ecosystem Services: A Case Study of Edirne

Although green spaces in cities play a critical role in providing ecosystem services, cemeteries are often consideredan overlooked part of urban green spaces. However, in recent years, these areas have come to the forefront due totheir potential to provide a range of important ecosystem services such as conservation of biological diversity,habitat provision, air quality regulation, carbon storage, and water management. This study aims to concretelydetermine the contribution of four cemeteries -Acıçeşme, Buçuktepe, Bademlik and Karaağaç- located within thecentral district boundaries of Edirne, to urban ecosystem services. Using the i-Tree Canopy model, the land coverdistribution, air pollution impacts, and carbon sequestration/storage amounts of these cemeteries were analysed.The results indicate that Buçuktepe cemetery provides the highest ecosystem services due to its large area and densetree canopy. It is estimated that the 64.2% tree canopy cover in Buçuktepe Cemetery removes 365.44 kg of gasesand particulate matter from the air annually, sequesters 16.02 tonnes of carbon and stores 402.21 tonnes of carbon.These results show that cemeteries make a significant contribution to regulating ecosystem services in urban areas.The study highlights the potential for transforming cemeteries into multifunctional landscapes that contribute tourban ecosystem services.

Mangrove Preservation and Urban Air Pollution in Aracaju, Northeast Brazil

According to WHO, in 2010 the air pollution was the main cause of over 200 thousand obits related to lung cancer. This paper aims to analyze the role of mangrove and their preservation on air pollution mitigation at Aracaju, northeast Brazil. The city was founded by the Sergipe River, few kilometers from the Atlantic Ocean, which configures it as an ideal site for mangrove development. Mobile measurements of CO were taken place in an urbanized area close to a mangrove area, providing an idea of the pollutant spatial dynamics. The benefits of the mangrove preservation were calculated using the ITree canopy v.7.1. The results reveal that the Mangrove preservation is responsible for over 4 tons of pollutants removal per year, a fact that can be related to the low levels of pollutions registered on the area during the measurements, helping to endorse the urban trees and mangrove areas preservation.

Criticism of the Effect of Green Cover Change on Air Quality with i-Tree Canopy (Bursa-Osmangazi Region Sample)

Anything that reflects the ethnicity of a society that has aesthetic and visual textures transferred from past generations to the present day, that is universally accepted, that contains abstract and concrete concepts, and that is intended to be preserved and transferred to future generations is called "cultural heritage". Today's urbanism continues to develop around the settlements of ancient civilisations, which are accepted as cultural heritage. Today, migration from villages to cities has increased and population density in cities has shown a rapid upward trend. The destruction of green areas due to rapid urbanisation has increased visibly and has made smart cities with green areas obligatory. In smart urbanisation, practical methods are sought to quickly identify green areas and determine the benefits provided by these areas. The most widely used software for measuring tree canopy cover is i-Tree Canopy, which allows urban planners to quantify the ecosystem services and benefits of tree communities and forests at multiple scales, including pollution reduction, carbon sequestration and storage, and runoff reduction. Within the scope of the study, the changes on green areas such as urbanisation, industrialisation, increase in transportation networks brought about by population growth in the historical city centre of Bursa and the negative and positive effects of these changes were examined. In the study, the time-dependent changes of green areas in urban heritage and urban planning were determined with GIS (Geographical Information Systems) techniques, and suggestions were developed for existing and new green areas to be planned in the city.

Examining regulating ecosystem service provision by brownfield and park typologies and their urban distribution

Environmental hazards including air pollution, heat waves, and flooding are pressing issues in cities. In response, many cities are pledging to increase green infrastructure, adopting nature-based solutions for enhancing resilience through ecosystem service provision. At the same time, urban densification is increasingly considered necessary to limit urban sprawl, where redevelopment of brownfield is often promoted as an alternative to development of greenbelt land. Consequently, while the drive to install additional green infrastructure is intensifying, the synchronous loss of brownfield vegetation may result in unintentional net losses. It is therefore essential to evaluate brownfield’s contribution to ecosystem service provision. Here we present a comparative analysis of the regulating ecosystem services provided by brownfield and park trees in Greater Manchester, UK. Parks were selected as a comparator as they represent the most abundant and widely distributed types of open green space, and typically contain a high proportion of trees. Ecosystem service provision was evaluated across statistically defined typologies of twenty-six brownfield and twelve park types (varying in terms of landscape metrics, land, and canopy cover) using i-Tree Canopy. In terms of carbon storage brownfield (3194 ha) provided an estimated 52,765 t of carbon storage and annual carbon sequestration of 2101 t/y, for parks (4128 ha), 143,064 t of carbon storage, carbon sequestration of 5696 t/y. Annual air pollution removal is estimated at 313 t/y of air pollution removal for brownfields, and 849 t/y for parks. Avoided surface water runoff is estimated at 135,018 m3/y for brownfields and 366,280 m3/y for parks. In densely built areas, brownfields provided approximately five times more regulating ecosystem services than parks, and several types of vegetated brownfield provided more regulating ecosystem services than many types of park. We conclude that brownfield is an important component of green infrastructure, where this knowledge is critical to inform planning and management, prevent loss of ecosystem services, and identify where strategic greening of brownfield may address inequities in existing green infrastructure.

Assessment of vegetation change using NDVI, LST, and carbon analyses in Çankırı Karatekin University, Turkey.

Due to a rising population and urbanization, the green areas have been decreasing in cities, with a negative impact on air pollution, human health, and ecosystem. As part of the urban environment, university campuses contribute to urban ecosystem with their vegetation. This study aims to (1) assess the change of vegetative land cover of the Çankırı Karatekin University in Turkey and (2) evaluate its benefits to the ecosystem in terms of carbon sequestration, storage, and improvement of air quality by means of a simulation. In the study, the density and vegetation change were assessed with NDVI and LST analyses in ArcGIS; carbon emissions and air pollution benefits were estimated in i-Tree Canopy tool. The study showed that the healthy vegetation consisting of trees/shrubs and grass/herbaceous, which was 32.2% (28ha) in 2000, increased to 85% (74ha) in 2020 NDVI maps, and the surface temperature also increased between 2000 and 2020 in LST maps.The rise in vegetation as grass/herbaceous areas instead of trees/shrubs and the use of impervious buildings/roads on the land surface increased the land surface temperature. As a result of the analyses in the i-Tree-Canopy tool, it was estimated that the trees/shrubs and grass/herbaceous vegetation canopy covering 31.42% of the study area removed a total of 512,845.65g of pollutant gas and particles from the air, 20.79 tonnes of carbon sequestered annually, and 522.01 tonnes of carbon stored by vegetative land cover. In the simulation, where 32.62% soil/bare ground areas were converted to trees/shrubs in order to improve vegetation cover in the area, it was determined that it contributed 5 times more to the ecosystem service value for removing pollutants from the air, carbon storage, and improving the ecosystem. It was revealed that the vegetative land cover formed by tree/shrub species should be increased in the campus in the future. The study method model serves as a tool for planning and designing eco-friendly urban environment.

MEASURING AIR QUALITY IMPACTS OF GREEN AREAS AND ECOSYSTEM SERVICES (ESS) USING WEB-BASED I-TREE CANOPY TOOL: A CASE STUDY IN ISTANBUL

In this study, it was aimed to evaluate the regulating ecosystem services for improving the air quality provided in the Kuzguncuk Neighborhood, which is located within the borders of Üsküdar district of Istanbul province. In this context, 5500 random points were identified within the boundaries of the research area by using the i-Tree canopy tool, which is a web-based tool. The land cover represented by each point is grouped into five classes: i) Tree/Shrub (tree and tall shrub vegetations), ii) Grass/herbaceous (areas covered with herbaceous vegetation, iii) Soil/Bare Ground (soil surface with little or no vegetation), iv) Impervious Surfaces (building, structures, asphalt, impervious roads, etc.) and v) Water (areas with streams or stagnant water). According to these classifications, the annual amount of carbon sequestered by the tree-shrub canopy in the Kuzguncuk neighborhood, the amount of CO₂, the amount of carbon they stored over their lifetimes, the amount of CO₂, and their economic contribution have been calculated. Additionally, the amount of significant air pollutants removed by this canopy, such as carbon monoxide (CO), nitrogen dioxide (NO2), ozone (O3), sulfur dioxide (SO2), and particulate matter PM2.5 and PM10, and the economic benefits of removing these pollutants have been determined. The results showed that trees sequestered 855.93 tons of CO2 annually and stored 21,495.71 tons of CO2 in the neighborhood, 46.05% of which is covered with canopy. However, it was calculated that 69.94 kg of CO, 381.39 kg of NO2, 3,798.45 kg of O3, 240.34 kg of SO2, 184.57 kg of PM2.5 and 1,272.34 kg of PM10 particulate matter were removed from the atmosphere in a year by the vegetation cover. It has been calculated that the economic contribution provided by this removal is $ 2,251 per year. This study reveals the ecological and economic importance of green spaces for ecosystem services studies in urban areas by considering a neighborhood scale in determining the ecosystem services provided by the canopy cover. It is thought that the numerical values obtained in this sample region will contribute to urban planning strategies in terms of green infrastructures for future studies.

The significance and benefits of green infrastructures using I-Tree canopy software with a sustainable approach

The significance and benefits of green infrastructures using I-Tree canopy software with a sustainable approach

CONTRIBUTION OF URBAN CEMETERIES TO ECOSYSTEM SERVICES: EVIDENCE FROM TOURISTIC ANTALYA CITY OF TURKEY

Abstract. This study focuses on concretely determining the contribution of cemeteries to the urban ecosystems in Antalya, one of the most important tourism destinations of Turkey. The study covers three cemeteries (Andızlı, Arapsuyu, and Uncalı Cemeteries) located in the city center of Antalya, with an area of 14.02 ha, 5.12 ha, and 22.96 ha, respectively. These areas are classified into two classes as vegetation and non-vegetation to calculate ecosystem services with open access and user-friendly i-Tree Canopy software to calculate the contribution of green areas in the mentioned cemeteries to the regulatory services of the ecosystem. According to the results, the green cover in the Andızlı Cemetery constitutes 81.64% of the total cemetery area and holds 54.35 tons of carbon per year. In terms of combating air pollution, it has been determined that the cemetery contributes to ecosystem services by removing a total of 1085.60 kilos of CO, NO2, O3, SO2, and PM annually. Similarly, with its 4.88% impermeable buildings, 2.93% other impermeable surfaces, 18.55% soil ground, and 73.63% vegetation, the green cover of Arapsuyu Cemetery captures 357.96 kg of pollutants per year. Lastly, Uncalı Cemetery was shown to remove 1466.01 kg of air pollutants and 73.40 tons of carbon. Cemeteries that are part of the green infrastructure system and its contributions to ecosystem services are emphasized among the proposals to be made in line with the 2050 targets of the European Green Deal. In this context, by making legal and administrative additions to the spatial planning throughout the city, the realization of this intention might be accelerated.

Green in the City: Estimating the Ecosystem Services Provided by Urban and Peri-Urban Forests of Tbilisi Municipality, Georgia

Green spaces play a significant role in providing essential natural services to cities. This study aims to estimate Tbilisi’s green cover and identify the surface cover classes, volumes, and values of ecosystem services. The study area embraces the territory of Tbilisi municipality in its legal/administrative boundaries, which is equal to 502 sq. km. We use the i-Tree Canopy program (v.7.1) to identify the surface cover classes and quantify and price the ecosystem services provided by Tbilisi’s urban and peri-urban forests. The analysis includes the identification and distribution of the surface classes of the territory of Tbilisi, which is presented as follows: grass/herbaceous (38.71% +/− 1.36%), various impervious surfaces (approx. 21.18%), soil/bare ground (8.61% +/− 0.78%), trees/shrubs (28.55% +/− 1.26%), and water (2.95% +/− 0.47) surfaces. Analysis revealed the volumes of the removal of atmospheric pollutants, the annual removal of atmospheric carbon, and the total carbon stock fixed in the trees and shrub vegetation and provided the monetary values, expressed in US Dollars rounded per sq. km, of stored and sequestered carbon and pollution removal on the studies territory. The results showed that the annual removal of air pollutants (CO, NO2, O3, SO2, PM2.5 and PM10) totals 1227 tons or 2.444 t/sq.km. The average annual carbon sequestration by trees and other vegetation is 43.72 thousand tons (87.09 t/sq.km), with an approximate value of 8.22 million USD. The trees are storing 1097.9 kilotons of carbon (2187.95 t/sq.km) with its CO2 equivalent of 4025 kilotons. The estimated value of this service equals 206.4 million USD. This type of analysis of surface covers and ecosystem services has been performed in Tbilisi for the first time. The study revealed the significant magnitude and the great potential of “green benefits” provided by the urban vegetation to the city. It gives additional arguments for better utilization of this knowledge for advanced planning of the urban green infrastructure of Tbilisi for strengthening its sustainable and resilient development.

Uma estimativa dos serviços ecossistêmicos fornecidos pelas florestas urbanas e peri-urbanas: um estudo de caso em Juiz de Fora, Brasil

ABSTRACT: Urban expansion has led to the replacement of natural landscapes and environmental degradation, making cities and their urban and peri-urban forests (UPFs) vulnerable to climate change, especially on the formation of heat islands. Using i-Tree Canopy program (v. 7.0), we estimate the ecosystem services provided by UPFs in Juiz de Fora (Minas Gerais State, Southeastern Brazil), through the analysis of the (1) annual removal of atmospheric pollutants, (2) annual removal of atmospheric carbon, (3) total carbon stock in vegetation, and (4) the monetary benefits of sequestered and stocked carbon, based on Future Carbon Credit (CFI2Z1) as a monetary proxy. The results showed an average total amount of removal of 4.45 thousand tons of air pollution annually. The average annual total carbon storage was 158 thousand tons and the equivalent CO2 was 580 thousand tons, with an estimated total value of R$ 173 million per year. Significant values of the gross carbon stock (3.98 million tons) and equivalent CO2 (14.59 million tons) were found, being valued at R$ 4.35 billion. We concluded that the Juiz de Fora UPFs have a great potential for socio-environmental and economic benefits.

Urban centre green metrics in Great Britain: A geospatial and socioecological study.

Green infrastructure plays a vital role in urban ecosystems. This includes sustaining biodiversity and human health. Despite a large number of studies investigating greenspace disparities in suburban areas, no known studies have compared the green attributes (e.g., trees, greenness, and greenspaces) of urban centres. Consequently, there may be uncharacterised socioecological disparities between the cores of urban areas (e.g., city centres). This is important because people spend considerable time in urban centres due to employment, retail and leisure opportunities. Therefore, the availability of--and disparities in--green infrastructure in urban centres can affect many lives and potentially underscore a socio-ecological justice issue. To facilitate comparisons between urban centres in Great Britain, we analysed open data of urban centre boundaries with a central business district and population of ≥100,000 (n = 68). Given the various elements that contribute to 'greenness', we combine a range of different measurements (trees, greenness, and accessible greenspaces) into a single indicator. We applied the normalised difference vegetation index (NDVI) to estimate the mean greenness of urban centres and the wider urban area (using a 1 km buffer) and determined the proportion of publicly accessible greenspace within each urban centre with Ordnance Survey Open Greenspace data. Finally, we applied a land cover classification algorithm using i-Tree Canopy to estimate tree coverage. This is the first study to define and rank urban centres based on multiple green attributes. The results suggest important differences in the proportion of green attributes between urban centres. For instance, Exeter scored the highest with a mean NDVI of 0.15, a tree coverage of 11.67%, and an OS Greenspace coverage of 0.05%, and Glasgow the lowest with a mean NDVI of 0.02, a tree cover of 1.95% and an OS Greenspace coverage of 0.00%. We also demonstrated that population size negatively associated with greenness and tree coverage, but not greenspaces, and that green attributes negatively associated with deprivation. This is important because it suggests that health-promoting and biodiversity-supporting resources diminish as population and deprivation increase. Disparities in green infrastructure across the country, along with the population and deprivation-associated trends, are important in terms of socioecological and equity justice. This study provides a baseline and stimulus to help local authorities and urban planners create and monitor equitable greening interventions in urban/city centres.

Socioeconomic and Environmental Benefits of Expanding Urban Green Areas: A Joint Application of i-Tree and LCA Approaches

Green infrastructures deliver countless functions for counteracting climate change, air pollution, floods, and heat islands, contributing at the same time to water and carbon recycling as well as to renewable energies and feedstock provisioning. Properly addressing such environmental problems would require huge investments that could be decreased thanks to the further implementation of urban forests. Local administrations are designing participative projects to improve territories and their living conditions. The i-Tree Canopy modelling tool and the life cycle assessment method are jointly applied to evaluate the potential benefits of increasing tree coverage within the boundaries of the Metropolitan City of Naples, Southern Italy. Results highlighted that tree coverage could increase by about 2.4 million trees, thus generating 51% more benefits in pollutants removal, carbon sequestration and stormwater management. The benefits are also explored and confirmed by means of the life cycle assessment method. The potential tree cover is expected to provide a total annual economic benefit of USD 55 million, purchasing power parity value adjusted, representing USD 18 per citizen and USD 99,117 per square kilometre of implemented urban forest. These results can support a potential replication elsewhere and provide a reference for the sustainable improvement of cities by expanding urban green areas.

Determination of the optimum number of sample points to classify land cover types and estimate the contribution of trees on ecosystem services using the I-Tree Canopy tool.

The process of producing information about dynamic land use and land cover and ecosystem health quickly with high accuracy and low cost is important. This information is one of the basic data used for sustainable land management. For this purpose, remote sensing technologies are generally used, and sampling points are mostly assigned. Determination of the optimum number of sampling points using the I-Tree Canopy tool was the main focus of this study. The I-Tree Canopy tool classifies land cover, revealing the effects of tree cover on ecosystem services, such as carbon (C) sequestration and storage, temperature regulation, air pollutant filtering, and air quality improvement, with numerical data. It is used because it is practical, open source, and user-friendly. This software works based on sampling point assignment, but it is unclear how many sampling points should be assigned. Therefore, determining the optimum number of sample points by statistical methods will increase the effectiveness of this tool and guide users. For this purpose, reference data were created for comparison. Then, 31 I-Tree Canopy reports were created with 100-point increments up to 3100. The data obtained from the reports were compared with the reference data, and statistical analysis based on Gaussian and a second-order polynomial fit was performed. At the end of the analysis, the following results were obtained; the results of this study demonstrated that the optimum number of sample points for a 1-ha area is 760 ± 32 from the comparison of the real area and I-Tree Canopy results. Similar results from the Gaussian fit of annually sequestered and stored C and carbon dioxide (CO2 ) amounts in trees and the reduction in air pollution in grams were obtained as 714 ± 16. Therefore, we may conclude that taking more than 800 sample points will not be statistically significant. Integr Environ Assess Manag 2023;19:726-734. © 2022 SETAC.

Study on the land surface cover dynamics of built-up areas and its implication for sustainable urban planning in Hawassa city, Ethiopia

Rapid and uncontrolled urbanization is one of the drivers responsible for land cover Change dynamics in Ethiopia. In most of the cities and towns of Ethiopia, the proportion of different types of urban land surface cover and trends of change in each are unknown and thus hindering environmentally sustainable urban planning. This study describes different land surface cover types and their dynamics of change, and subsequent influence on the Land Surface Temperature of Hawassa city between 2011 and 2021. The i-Tree canopy and Landsat 5 (TM) and Landsat 8 (OLI) images were used for 2011 and 2021 to analyze the land surface cover and surface temperature change, respectively. The results show that bare soil is the dominant land surface cover type (23.4%), followed by tree canopy cover (21.4%), while impervious roads occupied the smallest land surface area cover (3.4%) along with water bodies (1%). In 10 years most of the land surface cover types increased positively, including tree covers by + 9.8%. The only exceptions were bare soil and herbaceous cover, which decreased drastically by − 34.6% and − 2.8%, respectively. As a result of tree cover increment, the average and maximum Land Surface Temperature showed a declining trend between the two periods. This study shows that increasing tree cover in line with the expansion of urbanization is inversely correlated with the land surface temperature which implies that integrating green coverage along with the built-up area can reduce heatwave in the fast growing urban areas. Therefore, the Hawassa city administration should set tree cover targets to achieve the desired balance between green and grey infrastructure and enhance the climate resilience level of the study area.

Assessing Green Roof Contributions to Tree Canopy Ecosystem Services and Connectivity in a Highly Urbanized Area

Ecosystem services refer to the benefits provided to humans by the natural environment and healthy ecosystems. Green roofs can be used to enhance ecosystem services, which are reduced by urbanization. Moreover, green roofs can improve biodiversity by connecting green spaces. Therefore, it is necessary to examine the multi-dimensional contributions of green roofs to urban ecosystems. To this end, we used i-Tree Canopy to identify changes in land cover and tree canopy ecosystem services from 2003 to 2021 in Suwon City, Republic of Korea. Next, we simulated improved ecosystem service effects of tree canopies by green roofs. Graph theory was also used to analyze connectivity improvement at local and landscape scales. Tree area was found to decrease from 2003 to 2012, alongside the corresponding ecosystem services, which then showed a tendency to increase from 2012 to 2021. The tree area was expected to increase further in the green roof scenario than in 2003. Green roofs were found to improve tree canopy connectivity at the landscape scale more than the local scale, by acting as stepping stones in connecting fragmented forests and trees. Areas with improved connectivity at both scales should be prioritized for green roof development. These results will aid in the strategic planning of urban green infrastructure and provide support for decision-making processes to improve ecosystem services and connectivity using green roofs.

Confort térmico producido por la vegetación arbórea en el macrocentro de Bahía Blanca (Argentina)

Urban trees are essential since they generate multiple benefits to society, one of them is the mitigation of the urban heat island. The present work aims to obtain the thermal comfort produced by the arboreal vegetation in the downtown area of Bahía Blanca city. For this, Local Climate Zone of the study area was determined according to its characteristics and the percentage of vegetation cover was obtained using the online software I-tree Canopy. A survey of the street trees was also conducted to determine the most representative species. During the summer of 2020, measurements of air temperature and relative humidity were made under the canopy of fifteen trees, at 3:00 p.m., in 15 days typical of this thermal season. Then, by applying the vegetation comfort index, it was found that all the selected trees contribute to improve the thermal comfort of the population. However, there were differences among them, with Platanus acerifolia and Parasenegalia visco standing out for their higher magnitude and their impact on the decrease in air temperature under their canopies. In addition, problems related to street trees were identified and described, and finally proposals were established. These results allow to consider that, given the importance of trees in the urban microclimate, their coverage should be increased in the downtown area in order to contribute to thermal regulation during the summer. The need for regular maintenance work to avoid the problems detected in the roadside trees and to enhance the ecosystem services they provide was confirmed.

Perception of Ecosystem Services and Adaptation to Climate Change: Mirador Sur Park in Santo Domingo

The rapid urbanization of cities has resulted in the deterioration of urban forests and the loss of important benefits from green infrastructure, such as the removal of Greenhouse Gases (GHG) and carbon sequestration. The Mirador Sur Park is one of the main green spaces in the city of Santo Domingo. The objective of this research was to identify citizen participation in the design and management of urban forests as a strategy for guiding cities towards a more sustainable and resilient model in the face of climate change. In this study, changes in the park’s land use were identified, 136 park users were interviewed to find out their perception of the benefits of forest cover, and the ecosystem services of Mirador Sur Park were quantified using the i-Tree Canopy tool. It was found that the ecosystem services related to the removal of atmospheric pollutants are clearly perceived by the users of the park. However, there are other services that could not be identified if there is no relationship with the users of the park, such as those related to the benefits of human well-being. Citizens’ perception and appropriation are important elements for the co-management of the park, and it would be appropriate for them to become involved in the design and implementation of environmental public policies, as well as nature-based solutions, that contribute to adequate and inclusive urban planning aimed at adapting to climate change.