Climate Change on the Urban Scale – Effects and Counter-Measures in Central Europe

Counteracting urban climate change: adaptation measures and their effect on thermal comfort

“…A temperature-reducing downwind effect of green spaces on nearby built-up areas has been shown previously by various authors, as summarized by Bongardt (2006) and Kuttler (2012). In our model simulations, downwind effects with a reduction of thermal pollution in dense environments can be observed, particularly in the water and vegetation scenarios.…”

“…This difference can largely be attributed to the higher thermal admittance of the wetter soil (Spronken-Smith and Oke 1998), whereas at night heat is not emitted as fast as from dry ground. During the day, however, soil with a high water content is not heated as strongly as poorly watered ground (see Huttner et al 2009;Kuttler 2012). In addition, a PET reduction up to 3.5 K greater is achieved by higher evaporation from moist soil vis-a-vis soil with a low water content corresponding to the shift of thermal comfort classes from very hot to hot or hot to warm over the modified area (Fig.…”

“…High nocturnal PET values can lead to decreased sleeping comfort and a higher mortality, especially during heat waves (e.g., Laaidi et al 2012). Such effects are amplified during prolonged heat waves, when the daily minimum and maximum temperatures increase with heat wave duration (Kuttler 2012). A clear differentiation was apparent in the nightly threshold values between the compact midrise (1 and 2) and large lowrise (4) LCZs and the sparsely built (6), dense trees (7), and low plants (8) LCZs (Table 4).…”

Isla de frío de los parques urbanos de Barcelona. Estudio de caso del Turó parc y el parc del Centre del Poblenou

“…The urban parks cool island (PCI) effect is the reduction of temperature presented by the parks and their surroundings in relation to the continuous urban fabric that they are located. In contrast to the urban heat island effect (UHI), partly caused by the artificialization of surfaces, the parks commonly with a higher concentration of vegetation and permeable surfaces have lower temperatures and generate a cooling effect on their surroundings (Jauregui, 1990;Spronken-Smith & Oke, 1998;Kuttler, 2012). However, the propagation of this effect outside the perimeter of the park is defined by the relationship between its own characteristics and the microclimate of its surroundings, so recognizing the role of the attributes of these spaces in the PCI, is crucial in the generation of strategies to optimize this effect and contribute to the UHI alleviating.…”

“…Así como con métodos de teledetección y sistemas de información geográfica, se obtuvieron los descriptores físicos de vegetación, tipos de superficies y edificación. Como resultado, el Turó Parc registró un alcance de 80m fuera de su perímetro y el Parc del Centre del Poblenou 90m, con la mayor intensidad de IFP en la durante la noche, con 2,89°C y 2,75°C respectivamente, valores consistentes con estudios previos (Kuttler, 2012). En cuanto a los descriptores físicos, la vegetación registró la mayor…”