This study investigated the effect of the concentration of ambient fine particulate matter (PM2.5), a transboundary air pollutant, on the livability of neighboring areas of China and South Korea with the aim of informing common policy development. Grey relational analysis (GRA) and panel regression analysis were performed to examine the effect of PM2.5 concentration on various livability indicators. The results revealed that urban living infrastructure was an indicator of effect in both South Korea and China. Based on the high correlation between urban living infrastructure and PM2.5 concentration, it can be seen that PM2.5 clearly affects livability, shown by panel regression analysis. Other key livability indicators were traffic safety, culture and leisure, and climate indicators. Spatial analysis of the livability index revealed that from 2015 to 2019, livability improved in both South Korea and China, but there was a clear difference in the spatial distribution in China. High-vulnerability areas showed potential risks that can reduce livability in the long run. In South Korea and China, areas surrounding large cities were found to be highly vulnerable. The findings of this research can guide the establishment of policies grading PM2.5 pollution at the regional or city macro-level.

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Livability is the “right” to live where all citizens can enjoy adequate housing, health care, educational opportunities, consumption, and leisure. This definition can be used as a tool to measure an area’s standard of living conditions and protect the residents’ rights to a standard of living. Therefore, a systematic review of indicators for measuring livability is essential. In this study, urban livability indicators were derived by the “Scoping Review” method. Based on the guidelines of JBI and PRISMA-ScR, research institutes that provide guidelines related to systematic reviews and meta-analyses, 20 articles were extracted from 1,193 articles published between 2000 and 2021. Results of the study show that, first, multi-dimensional indicators were used to measure urban livability. Second, the derived indicators for each dimension were linked or frequently intersected. Third, a conceptual framework of urban livability indicators was presented. This study is unique in that it attempted a a scoping review of urban livability indicators research and derived indicators according to spatial scale and time step.

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We analyzed the temperature changes in cities and regions due to the lifting of the green belt in Busan Metropolitan City. The difference between the average temperature change in the summer surface due to the lifting of the green belt was analyzed in Local Spatial Autocorrelation Analysis (LISA) for the two points in 2000, when the green belt was fully preserved, and in 2018, when the recent record heatwave was recorded. Consequently, approximately 28.14% of the areas where the green belt was lifted from the cluster map became a hotspot. In Busan Metropolitan City, the changes in the soil quality, resulting from the development of new towns, creation of industrial complexes, reduction of green areas, and an increase in impervious areas due to largescale housing development projects following the lifting of the green belt, lead to the temperature rise in the city, thereby causing urban heat island phenomenon. This study contributes to the field by revealing that the urban heat island phenomenon can be affected in the long term depending on the urban development project involved in the lifting of the green belt. In addition to its original function of preserving the environment and preventing urban sprawl, the green belt can be a major urban planning tool for mitigating the rising urban heat island phenomenon caused by climate change, which demonstrates its policy implications.