A Literature Review of Cooling Center, Misting Station, Cool Pavement, and Cool Roof Intervention Evaluations

Abstract

Heat islands and warming temperatures are a growing global public health concern. Although cities are implementing cooling interventions, little is known about their efficacy. We conducted a literature review of field studies measuring the impact of urban cooling interventions, focusing on cooling centers, misting stations, cool pavements, and cool or green roofs. A total of 23 articles met the inclusion criteria. Studies of cooling centers measured the potential impact, based on evaluations of population proximity and heat-vulnerable populations. Reductions in temperature were reported for misting stations and cool pavements across a range of metrics. Misting station use was evaluated with temperature changes and user questionnaires. The benefits and disadvantages of each intervention are presented, and metrics for evaluating cooling interventions are compared. Gaps in the literature include a lack of measured impacts on personal thermal comfort, limited documentation on intervention costs, the need to standardize temperature metrics, and evaluation criteria.

Effects of the Bamboo Communities on Microclimate and Thermal Comfort in Subtropical Climates

“…A large number of empirical studies and numerical simulations have demonstrated that vegetation generally has a regulating effect on human thermal comfort [18,24,70]. For example, in the residential area of Freiburg in southwestern Germany, Lee et al applied the ENVI-met model to simulate four different urban green coverage scenarios and noted a maximum reduction in PET of 17.4 K for trees on grasslands and only 4.9 K for grasslands [70].…”

“…At the same time, the negative impact of global climate issues included lower temperatures 2 of 21 in the cold season in some areas, and the proportion of deaths caused by cold was higher than that caused by heat [15]. In response to the problems caused by global climate change, mitigation and adaptation strategies, such as optimization of urban structure and increased use of reflective roofs and cool pavements, have been extensively explored [16][17][18][19]. Among these strategies, green spaces are seen as important resources for regulating the climate and microclimate [20][21][22].…”

Evaluation of Microclimate Benefits Due to Cool Pavements and Green Infrastructures on Urban Heat Islands

“…In the literature, urban green infrastructures (UGI), building materials (for both road pavements and factories), public transport, water treatment, and urban ventilation are the key factors that affect an urban microclimate [16][17][18][19]. Therefore, the scientific literature is investigating the best strategies to counteract and mitigate the effects of UHIs [20][21][22]. For example, cool pavements can soften the negative effects of UHIs through different technologies [23][24][25].…”