Assessing The Spatiotemporal Urban Green Cover Changes and Their Impact on Land Surface Temperature and Urban Heat Island in Lahore (Pakistan)

Abstract

Urban vegetation has a decisive role in sustaining homogeneous Land Surface Temperature (LST) in a built-up environment. However, urban areas are facing rapid changes in land use/land cover (LULC) over the last few decades as green cover is being replaced by built-up structures. Consequently, LST is increasing and urban heat island (UHI) effects are expanding. In this context, this study was organized to assess urban green cover changes in Lahore and their impact on LST and UHI effects. For this, climate data was collected from the Pakistan Meteorological Department and Landsat images were acquired from Earth Explorer. LULC and LST maps were generated for 1990, 2000, 2010, and 2020 in ArcGIS 10.8. Also, Normalized Difference Vegetation Index (NDVI) and Normalized Difference Built-up Index (NDBI) were computed to analyze the effects of vegetation and built-up areas on LST and UHI. The study found that over the last three decades, built-up area increased 113.85% by removing 392.78 km2 of green cover in the study area. Similarly, a rapid expansion of the high LST range and UHI effects was found towards the eastern and southern parts of the study area. Moreover, a negative correlation was found between LST and NDVI, whereas the correlation between LST and NDBI was found to be positive. Therefore, it was concluded that the continuation of green cover reduction is highly damaging because this might render the city more fragile ecologically. So, the study calls the attention of the responsible authorities for suitable measures against continuous green cover loss in the study area.

Exploring the Effects of Land Use/Land Cover (LULC) Modifications and Land Surface Temperature (LST) in Pune, Maharashtra with Anticipated LULC for 2030

“…The results showed that built-up areas increased by 113.85% and green cover decreased by 392.78 km2 between 1990 and 2020. LST and UHI intensity were found to be positively correlated with built-up areas and negatively correlated with green cover [32].…”

The extent of the impact of green spaces on urban heat islands: A meta-analysis of research using remote sensing between 2010 and 2023

“…The prevalence of UHI is currently increasingly heightened in lockstep with the global temperature increase caused by climate change with the occurrence of successive and intense heat waves as its striking manifestation (Coumou & Robinson, 2013;Oliveira et al, 2022). The escalating UHI leads to elevated energy consumption (Dawodu and Cheshmehzangi, 2017) and compromised environmental quality (Park et al, 2018;Jabbar and Yusoff, 2022). It also exacerbates the vulnerability of urban systems, already in uenced by factors such as land use (LULC), population density, intricate infrastructure systems and diverse economic activities.…”

Evaluating The Visitors’ Perception And Available Ecosystem Services In Urban Parks Of Lahore (Pakistan) Research Paper

“…These factors encompass the quality and quantity of space, attributes of potential users (age, gender, race, socioeconomic profile), psychological factors (capability, identified hindrance) influencing personal preferences, accessibility, provision of facilities according to needs of users, parks maintenance and safety (Giles-Corti et al 2005). Green areas create a better human environment by controlling the city's climate, cooling temperature and filtering air (Jabbar & Yusoff, 2022a). It has been recognized that green space is a vital source of a sustainable urban environment (Jabbar et al 2021).…”