Urban Sites Research Articles

Source Apportionment of Black Carbon from Fossil Fuel and Biomass Burning at an Urban Site in North Africa (Kenitra, Morocco)

Source Apportionment of Black Carbon from Fossil Fuel and Biomass Burning at an Urban Site in North Africa (Kenitra, Morocco)

The effect of psychiatric decision unit services on inpatient admissions and mental health presentations in emergency departments: an interrupted time series analysis from two cities and one rural area in England.

High-quality evidence is lacking for the impact on healthcare utilisation of short-stay alternatives to psychiatric inpatient services for people experiencing acute and/or complex mental health crises (known in England as psychiatric decision units [PDUs]). We assessed the extent to which changes in psychiatric hospital and emergency department (ED) activity were explained by implementation of PDUs in England using a quasi-experimental approach. We conducted an interrupted time series (ITS) analysis of weekly aggregated data pre- and post-PDU implementation in one rural and two urban sites using segmented regression, adjusting for temporal and seasonal trends. Primary outcomes were changes in the number of voluntary inpatient admissions to (acute) adult psychiatric wards and number of ED adult mental health-related attendances in the 24months post-PDU implementation compared to that in the 24months pre-PDU implementation. The two PDUs (one urban and one rural) with longer (average) stays and high staff-to-patient ratios observed post-PDU decreases in the pattern of weekly voluntary psychiatric admissions relative to pre-PDU trend (Rural: -0.45%/week, 95% confidence interval [CI]=-0.78%, -0.12%; Urban: -0.49%/week, 95% CI=-0.73%, -0.25%); PDU implementation in each was associated with an estimated 35-38% reduction in total voluntary admissions in the post-PDU period. The (urban) PDU with the highest throughput, lowest staff-to-patient ratio and shortest average stay observed a 20% (-20.4%, CI=-29.7%, -10.0%) level reduction in mental health-related ED attendances post-PDU, although there was little impact on long-term trend. Pooled analyses across sites indicated a significant reduction in the number of voluntary admissions following PDU implementation (-16.6%, 95% CI=-23.9%, -8.5%) but no significant (long-term) trend change (-0.20%/week, 95% CI=-0.74%, 0.34%) and no short- (-2.8%, 95% CI=-19.3%, 17.0%) or long-term (0.08%/week, 95% CI=-0.13, 0.28%) effects on mental health-related ED attendances. Findings were largely unchanged in secondary (ITS) analyses that considered the introduction of other service initiatives in the study period. The introduction of PDUs was associated with an immediate reduction of voluntary psychiatric inpatient admissions. The extent to which PDUs change long-term trends of voluntary psychiatric admissions or impact on psychiatric presentations at ED may be linked to their configuration. PDUs with a large capacity, short length of stay and low staff-to-patient ratio can positively impact ED mental health presentations, while PDUs with longer length of stay and higher staff-to-patient ratios have potential to reduce voluntary psychiatric admissions over an extended period. Taken as a whole, our analyses suggest that when establishing a PDU, consideration of the primary crisis-care need that underlies the creation of the unit is key.

Co-designing action-oriented mental health conversations between care providers and ageing Canadians in the community: a participatory mixed-methods study protocol

IntroductionThe mental health of ageing Canadians is a growing concern, particularly post-pandemic. Older adults face systemic ageism and mental health stigma as pervasive barriers to seeking needed mental health support,...

Yielding Behavior of Turning Drivers to a Pedestrian With a Cane at Low-Light Signalized Intersections

Introduction: This study evaluated drivers’ delays and yields when making right turns at the onset of a circular green traffic signal, in response to pedestrian behaviors, during daylight and at night with streetlamp lighting, in urban and suburban locations. Methods: Researchers conducted trials at three intersections, two typical urban and one typical suburban intersection. Driver movement data were collected (N = 302) in three conditions: no pedestrian present (control); a pedestrian displaying a cane; and a pedestrian flagging a cane. Driver delay was recorded in seconds from the onset of the green traffic signal to when the vehicle crossed the middle of the width of the pedestrian's crosswalk. Results: The primary result was that there are no statistical differences between day and night driver delay. Secondarily, statistically significant differences were found for urban versus suburban drivers when flagging the cane versus displaying the cane, with urban sites and flagging a cane garnering greater delays. Yield calculations, based on the time required for a pedestrian to nearly clear the first half of the crosswalk, confirmed the patterns of drivers’ behaviors. Discussion: Authors anticipated negative effects on yielding in nighttime lower-light environments; however, there was similar driver delay and yields compared to daylight hours. Greater driver delay and yields, for flagging a cane and at urban settings, confirmed the results in previous studies. Implications for Practitioners: When assessing travel options, informed pedestrians and orientation and mobility specialists can consider the effectiveness of active cane techniques to increase the likelihood of yields from turning drivers, even at night where streetlamp lighting is the source of illumination. When instructing cane techniques for use at crosswalks, specialists can consider the options for mitigating risk when crossing typical streets in urban and suburban areas.

Comparison between a manual monitoring method based on active sampling and an automatic active monitoring method at urban and rural sites: Toward the accumulation of comparable data for effectiveness evaluation of the Minamata Convention

Comparison between a manual monitoring method based on active sampling and an automatic active monitoring method at urban and rural sites: Toward the accumulation of comparable data for effectiveness evaluation of the Minamata Convention

Comparison of Flight Periods of Solitary and Primitively Eusocial Bees in Urban Environments and Nature Conservation Areas: a Preliminary Report

Solitary and primitively eusocial bees, an important group of pollinators, have declined in the past few decades. In view of the recent focus on safeguarding pollinating insects, it is vital to understand the basic ecology of species for their conservation, for example their phenologies. We observed the flight periods of solitary and primitively eusocial bees in both the urban core of a large British town and nearby nature conservation areas. The bee surveys were conducted with standardised methods, on warm sunny days from the first appearance of bees in March 2012 and continued until October 2012. This study confirmed that a high number of species are active in the spring season. The emergence dates of species in urban areas and nature sites varied; about 26 of the 35 species were recorded at least one week earlier in urban areas; in contrast, only four species were seen earlier in nature conservation sites. When comparing this with the expected flight periods recorded (largely in nature sites) in the literature, many species were recorded at their expected time. However, a few individuals were recorded after their usual flight activity time, suggesting that the populations were possibly affected by the microclimate in urban areas. More urban phenological data are needed to understand the phenological trends in bees in urban habitats.

Seroprevalence of anti-SARS-CoV-2 antibodies and risk of viral exposure among healthcare workers in the South Kivu province, eastern Democratic Republic of the Congo: a cross-sectional study

ObjectivesHealthcare workers (HCWs) are on the frontline of combating COVID-19, hence are at elevated risk of contracting an infection with SARS-CoV-2. The present study aims to measure the impact of...

The economic situation and ways to solve the environmental problems in the city of Ust-Kut

<p>The Ust-Kutsky district and its center, the Ust-Kut city, have become the fastest growing in the Irkutsk region of Russia in the last decade. Ust-Kut is a very important settlement for the economic development of the northern territories of the Irkutsk region and the southern territories of the Republic of Sakha (Yakutia). The city is a key transport hub, where various types of transport routes converge: railway, aviation, automobile, river, and product pipeline. There are deposits of various minerals near Ust-Kut. The timber mining and timber-processing industries are represented here as much as possible. On the other hand, Ust-Kut is one of the ten most air-polluted cities in the Irkutsk region. Most of the air pollution consists of substances formed as a result of fuel combustion. The unfavorable air regime of the city is influenced by climatic conditions: relatively weak winds and temperature inversions in winter. The oil and gas deposits located nearby may help solve the problem of air pollution by gasification of Ust-Kut. In addition, water and soil pollution have been noted in the city due to technological problems of wastewater disposal, garbage collection, and recycling, as well as certain types of industrial waste processing. Therefore, the main task of the sustainable development of the city is to solve its environmental problems. Ust-Kut's environmental problems are solved at the expense of financial resources from government programs, which are not sufficient. But the tax on mining is completely federal, as these funds do not remain in the territory. Through this research, we have searched for ways to achieve a balance between economic development and environmental well-being in Ust-Kut. Specifically, we have explored additional types of economic activities that are safe for nature and public health. For Ust-Kut, located in the north of Eastern Siberia, it is important to increase the area of green spaces within the central part of the city. The development of a system of parks and squares involves their improvement and the formation of a connection into a single natural framework through linear landscaping objects and connections with urban forest sites. The use of sanitary protection zones around enterprises that emit into the environment will contribute to the formation of a comfortable environment and expand landscaping opportunities.</p>

Using CloudCompare software editing tools for processing a three-dimensional point cloud of an urban development site

This article describes the functions that can be performed by CloudCompare, an open-source triangular mesh and 3D point cloud processing software developed through a collaboration between Telecom ParisTech and EDF R&D. CloudCompare software is used to study and analyze archaeological sites and create their 3D models. Helps engineers monitor the condition of bridges, roads, buildings, etc., identify problems and find solutions to eliminate them. The program provides a set of basic tools for editing and rendering. Some basic editing tools for working in the CloudCompare software are studied and demonstrated, such as cloning, cutting an element from the main object of study, scaling. It is concluded that the CloudCompare software is easy to use and effectively performs the functions contained in it.

Hard life for sons in the nest? Sex-dependent offspring mortality in Great Tits in urban and forest areas

Sex-biased mortality can occur in birds during development, for example due to sexual differences in energy requirement and/or environmental sensitivity, or the effects of sex hormones or sex differences in the expression of mutations linked to sex chromosomes. The extent of sex-bias in mortality may also be related to environmental conditions that influence offspring development and survival. Urban areas often provide poorer conditions for nestling development resulting in higher offspring mortality compared to natural areas, which may accelerate sex differences in offspring mortality in cities. To test this hypothesis, we examined the sex ratio of dead offspring in Great Tits (Parus major), using 427 samples of unhatched eggs and dead nestlings collected in two urban and two forest sites between 2013 and 2019. The ratio of males in the whole sample of dead offspring (56.9%) was significantly higher than expected by an 1:1 ratio, and the strongest sex biases were detected in urban areas (57.6% males) and in young nestlings (<14 days old, 59.0% males). However, the sex ratios of dead offspring did not differ significantly among study sites and between offspring developmental stages. 29.3% of unhatched eggs contained a visible embryo, and the proportion of embryo-containing unhatched eggs did not differ significantly between urban and forest study sites. These results suggest male-biased offspring mortality in Great Tits, and highlight the need of large datasets to detect subtle differences between habitats and developmental stages.

Assessment of container breeding preference, distribution and composition of human biting mosquitos (Diptera: Culicidae) larvae within the urban and semi-urban sites of the Gash Barka zone, Eritrea

Assessment of container breeding preference, distribution and composition of human biting mosquitos (Diptera: Culicidae) larvae within the urban and semi-urban sites of the Gash Barka zone, Eritrea

Multiple Scenario Simulations of Land Use in Guangzhou City Based on the PLUS Model: Strategies for Sustainable Urban Planning

Against the backdrop of rapid urbanization, this study employs the Patch-based Land Use Simulation (PLUS) model to investigate land use dynamics in Guangzhou City over the last twenty years. The analysis reveals significant conversion of agricultural and forest lands into urban construction sites, driven by a complex interplay of natural and socio-economic factors. The PLUS model’s scenario simulations highlight the challenges of urban expansion on ecological spaces and sustainability. Findings suggest that Guangzhou City should adopt comprehensive land planning strategies that balance urban growth with ecological conservation. This involves implementing strict land use planning, optimizing urban layouts, and promoting ecologically friendly urban development methods. These recommendations aim to facilitate sustainable urban planning in Guangzhou, ensuring a harmonious coexistence between urban development and environmental preservation.

Анализ структуры сети особо охраняемых природных территорий городских округов на примере Дальневосточного федерального округа

The activation of socio-economic development of the Far Eastern Federal District has aroused interest around Russian and foreign practices for improving the quality of life of city residents, particularly in developing a network of protected areas (PA). The study’s goal is to analyze the structure of the network of protected areas in 11 Сity Districts including the administrative centers of the constituent entities that are of the part of the Far Eastern Federal District is presented. Research objectives: determination of the structure’s elements of the urban protected areas network; identification of quantitative and qualitative indicators characterizing the key elements of the PA network; conducting a comparative analysis in City Districts according to the degree of activation of the progress of forming a PA network. The work was carried out using the comparative geographical research method. Regulatory documents, statistical materials, cadastral information and target programs were analyzed. Networks of urban PA include three components: PA of federal, regional and municipal levels; ecological corridors, buffer zones. Yakutsk, Vladivostok and Blagoveshchensk lead in terms of the PA total area, which is due to the large area of these municipalities. Out of the 11 City Districts studied, 9 have organized protected areas of different levels of management and 14 categories. But protected areas of federal, regional, and municipal significance were developed in only two – “Yakutsk City” and “Blagoveshchensk City District”. It was established that PA of 14 categories were organized in 9 City Districts. The specificity of urban protected natural sites is reflected in the establishment of categories of PA with significant areas of wild nature as a calm zone, a resource reserve, a protected coastline, and a protected natural landscape. The network of PA in most City Districts is underdeveloped. The exceptions are “Blagoveshchensk City District”, “Vladivostok City District” and “YakutskCity”, where the indicator “share of protected areas from the total area of the City District” is 44,3, 29,5 and 25,7 % respectively. The picture of the formation of a PA network in City Districts of the Far Eastern Federal District is presented. The characteristics of PA were determined by natural factors, settlement and economic development practices, institutional changes, the realities of regional development of urban planning cases taking into account the environmental component. The research findings serve as an information basis for creating scenarios for the strategic development of City Districts including the environmental component that permeates the entire city fabric.

Drivers of urban biodiversity in Mexico and joint risks from future urban expansion, climate change, and urban heat island effect.

Urbanization is a phenomenon where humans concentrate in high densities and consume more per capita energy than in rural areas, imposing high pressures on biodiversity and ecosystem services. Although Mexico is recognized as a megadiverse country and there is an understanding of ecological and evolutionary processes underlying this high diversity, only some efforts have been devoted to understanding how urban biodiversity has been shaped. Here, we compiled a set of socioeconomic and ecological variables to explore macroecological patterns in urban biodiversity across Mexican municipalities. Specifically, we tested the species-area relationships (SAR) between rural and urban areas across municipalities and evaluated the relative role of different socioeconomic and ecological variables driving urban species richness for terrestrial vertebrates. Finally, we explored the exposure of Mexican municipalities to future urban expansion, the urban heat island (UHI) effect, and climate change. Urban and rural settlements show differences in the shape of SAR models. We found that urban area, size of the network of urban protected areas, the number of ecoregions, and GDP explained the urban total species richness relatively well. Mexican cities in the northeast region may be at a higher risk than others. Based on our analyses, policymakers should identify priority urban conservation sites in cities with high species richness and low urbanization development. These actions would alleviate future urban biodiversity loss in these growing cities.

“Urban ruins” The strategical importance of abandoned buildings in the process of urban reanimation

Entire generations of people, separated by time, through history, are mentally connected through the memories stored in those buildings which had survived to become imposing reminiscences of our past, through which we are able to connect with our ancestors and, therefore, our history. Urban ruins are a natural urban phenomenon. They represent a consequence of time and space, and also the direct result of the rapid urban development of the city, shaped constantly by internal and external social, political and economic conditions. They are usually those abandoned buildings and constructions, who lost their physical integrity due to their advanced state of physical degradation, caused by the lack of periodic maintenance, due to the abandonment of their owners, mostly due to economic reasons. They are usually found in abandoned or contaminated sites, better known as Brownfields and Greyfields. These old abandoned industrial and large commercial urban sites had formed in time disused urban tissues which had caused morphological and technical problems to the entire existing urban fabric of the city. Their lack of activity and advanced state of decay parasitizes the space they occupy within the city, endangers the urban hygiene and the safety of citizens, and overall damages the urban image of the city. The current PhD thesis aims to document the presence of all urban ruins, by mapping all the abandoned buildings and constructions in Bucharest City and analyse their strategic value and importance, in order to establish applicable theoretical principles regarding the urban morphological peculiarities of other cities which also may constitute the subject of this global phenomenon.

Long-Term Monitoring Studies of the Mycorrhizal Colonization of Aesculus hippocastanum L. Roots and the Vitality of Soil Microorganisms in Urban and Non-Urban Environments

Stress factors typical in urban environments adversely affect the productivity and vigor of trees and may limit the development of tree roots with associated soil fungi and bacteria. Studies on mycorrhizal symbiosis and the activity of soil microorganisms are important in monitoring the adaptation of trees to urban conditions. We compared the symbiotic activity of arbuscular mycorrhizal fungi (AMF) living in the rhizosphere of mature white chestnut trees (Aesculus hippocastanum L.) in an urban ecosystem at sites with varying degrees of anthropopressure and in a rural area. We used two methods: (1) direct analysis of the root samples, (2) assessment of the colonization of trap plants grown in the soil taken from under selected white horse chestnut trees. The seasonality of mycorrhizal colonization and soil microbial respiration based on the enzyme activity of nonspecific dehydrogenase (DHA) was studied over several growing seasons. The concentrations of macronutrients in the soil from all study sites were in the ranges accepted as normal for the upper soil layer. However, the C/N ratio indicated carbon limitation in the soil at urban and rural study sites. The results showed that arbuscular mycorrhizal fungi indigenous in the rhizosphere of A. hippocastanum developed a functioning mycorrhizal symbiosis at all research sites, including at highly disturbed urban locations, and that the mycorrhizal colonization varied between the study sites and the research term. The trap culture method confirmed the high biological potential of the soil microbial community, including AMF in urban ecosystems, which was comparable to that at the reference site in the rural environment. Soil moisture strongly affected the overall soil microbial vitality. This research showed that the mycorrhizal status of A. hippocastanum is more strongly influenced by climatic conditions and seasonal rhythms of trees than by urban/non-urban locations.

세종특별자치시의 난개발과 정책적 대응

1. CONTENTS (1) RESEARCH OBJECTIVES This study identifies the cause of the three changes in the Sejong City Growth Management Plan and analyzes related problems. In addition, the purpose of the study is to present improvement measures to prevent urban sprawl and the balloon effect, and to provide policy implications. (2) RESEARCH METHOD As a method of research, prior research and various literature is reviewed, and non-urbanized area management systems in Korea and abroad are compared and analyzed. It also compares applicable cases of relevant laws and guidelines. In addition, using related statistical data, the problems of the Sejong City Growth Management Plan are analyzed and improvement measures are suggested. (3) RESEARCH FINDINGS The main improvement measures include the application of discriminatory policies to areas other than growth-inducing zones, supplementing incentive systems, setting up planned urbanization sites as growth-inducing zones, linking them to unexecuted facilities in the city, restricting permission to development activities in mountain areas, the establishment of the Sejong Special Self-Governing City Growth Management Governance Committee (tentative name), the introduction of quasi-industrial complexes, integrating the factory location-inducing zone system into the Sejong Special Self-Governing City growth management plan, and urban development strategies for implementing regional unit planning guidelines in the surrounding area. 2. RESULTS As a result of this study, the problems of Sejong Special Self-Governing City's growth management plan implementation guidelines and eight improvement measures were presented, and two ways to apply non-urbanized area management systems were proposed.

Open Spaces – Dinamic Places: S M L XL

The article offers insights in the design practice of Maria Auböck and János Kárász, landscape architects in Vienna, Austria. The purpose of this text is to mark the occasion of us being awarded honorary professorships at MATE University. The selected methods describe the mission of Landscape Urbanism by presenting a variety of projects, each of them has a history and story of its own. The chosen design methods described include selected inspirations, for instance sketching on site, the choice of plant material and constructive challenges. The main methods applied offer varied aspects of team building, following questions for work cooperation. How can clients be motivated to consider time as a building material that extends beyond their decision-making horizon? How can affordable and attractive landscapes be created based on the insight that within these we are able to provide even added value in economic sense? How can sophisticated empty spaces be introduced in urban sites, and get public acceptance without overstaging them? To summarize the presented project palette the title “Open Spaces – Dynamic Places: S M L XL” was chosen as the article includes selected works in different scales. The projects include aspects of inner city renovation by example of a baroque monastery’s courtyard and art in public spaces (a memorial of a destroyed synagogue), explaining landscape designs for subsidized housing quarters and the urban greening of Baku- in four steps. The main aspects of the conclusion deals with landscape urbanism, a new field of planning in the challenging time of Climate Change.

HERITAGE REQUALIFICATION PROCESS THROUGH SOCIAL PERCEPTIONS: THE CASE OF "HALLE VOLTA" IN ALGIERS

Urban industrial sites in Algeria constitute a colonial heritage that often undergoes a process of degradation and abandonment, leading to ruptures in the urban fabric. The question of their preservation is conditioned by their integration into a contemporaneity useful to the community to which they represent the heritage.&#x0D; Therefore, their future cannot be dissociated from the physical and social context they are part of, emphasizing the relationship between the object and the subject. Engaged in their epistemic posi-tions, this article proposes expertise on the heritage potential of Halle Volta, one of the industrial architectural structures from the late 19th and early 20th centuries in Algiers.&#x0D; This expertise makes it possible to understand the appreciations and perceptions engaged by a community towards this relic of the past, with the perspective of its management and transformation. This approach highlights the connection between the social and urban dimensions that can be raised by a heritage requalification project. The knowledge gained from this aims to address the issue of the requalification of Halle Volta, and, to a larger extent, the future of urban industrial heritage in Algeria.

The urban heat island under extreme heat conditions: a case study of Hannover, Germany

Global warming has resulted in higher frequencies of climate extremes, such as drought periods or heat waves. Heat waves are intensified in urban areas due to the urban heat island effect. Studies are inconclusive as to whether the urban heat island effect is intensified during heat waves. Using the city of Hannover, Germany, as a case study, we analysed the intensity of the urban heat island under unprecedented summer heat conditions in the years 2018, 2019 and 2020, which were among the hottest in Germany since weather records began. We compared the intensity of the urban heat island across these years with the non-heat year of 2017. Differences were analysed for various inner-city urban locations and an urban park, while accounting for their distinct land use and land cover characteristics. We identified the urban heat island effect across all years investigated in the study and also found a significant intensified urban heat island effect during the years of unprecedented heat, when night-time temperature minima are considered. The urban heat island was identified on a lower level, however, with maximum daily temperatures when compared to the non-heat year. The lowest intensity of the urban heat island was found for the urban park site, highlighting the need for more city-wide greening strategies, including tree-covered and open green spaces, to provide all residents with the cooling services of green spaces.