How trees affect urban air quality: It depends on the source

Grylls, Tom; Reeuwijk, Maarten van

doi:10.1016/j.atmosenv.2022.119275

Cited by 16 publications

(3 citation statements)

References 42 publications

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“…There is also the capability to model trees in terms of drag, deposition of pollutants, and heat transfer. uDALES has been used for studies concerning atmospheric boundary layer processes (Grylls et al, 2020), air quality (Grylls et al, 2019;Lim et al, 2022), the effect of trees (Grylls and van Reeuwijk, 2022), and parametrisations for larger-scale models (Sützl et al, 2021a, b). The framework has been described in detail in (Suter et al, 2022), so this work only discusses novel or improved aspects and relevant concepts.…”

Section: Model Overviewmentioning

confidence: 99%

A conservative immersed boundary method for the multi-physics urban large-eddy simulation model uDALES v2.0

Owens,

Majumdar,

Wilson

et al. 2024

Preprint

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Abstract. uDALES is an open-source multi-physics microscale urban modelling framework, capable of performing large-eddy simulation (LES) of urban airflow, heat transfer, and pollutant dispersion. We present uDALES v2.0, which has two main new features: 1) an improved parallelisation that prepares the codebase for conducting exascale simulations; and 2) a conservative immersed boundary method (IBM) suitable for an urban surface that does not need to be aligned with the underlying Cartesian grid. The urban geometry and local topography are incorporated via a triangulated surface with a resolution that is independent of the fluid grid. The IBM developed here includes the use of wall functions to apply surface fluxes, and the exchange of heat and moisture between the surface and the air is conservative by construction. We perform a number of validation simulations, ranging from neutral, coupled internal-external flows and non-neutral cases. Good agreement is observed, both in cases in which the buildings are aligned with the Cartesian grid and when they are at an angle. We introduce a validation case specifically for urban applications, for which we show that supporting non grid-aligned geometries is crucial when solving surface energy balances, with errors of up to 20 % associated with using a previous version of uDALES.

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Section: Model Overviewmentioning

confidence: 99%

A conservative immersed boundary method for the multi-physics urban large-eddy simulation model uDALES v2.0

Owens,

Majumdar,

Wilson

et al. 2024

Preprint

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“…Humans can have a physical effect on trees by planting them, taking care of them or eventually cutting them down. In recent decades, the practical use of trees has been acknowledged in urban environments assisting in the regulation of, for example, air quality, noise, dust, heat, moisture and pollutants (Carter et al., 2018; Grylls & van Reeuwijk, 2022; Nowak et al., 2014; Pathak et al., 2011). In line with these uses, the effects of trees on humans have been studied from the point of view of physiology, such as the connection to trees lowering the heartbeat and relieving mental stress (see, e.g.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Do you have a tree friend?—Human–tree relationships in Finland

Vainio,

Korrensalo,

Takala

et al. 2024

People and Nature

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Trees are natural objects that carry practical, cultural and spiritual meanings to humans. Trees are an elemental part of human daily life, both in urban and rural environments, and even in locations where forests are distant. Conflicts related to tree removal in the close environments of humans indicate that individual trees may have special significance. Despite that, we have little knowledge of the ways these relationships are formed and the meanings they carry. To examine how the properties of trees and humans influence the type of relationships that are formed between them, we conducted a large‐scale survey (n = 1758). We used cluster analysis to identify typical groups of trees and human–tree relationships and conducted cross‐tabulation to correlate human and tree types in the relationships. In studying the human–tree relationship, we applied the framework of natureculture to address how the lives of humans and trees are bound together in interspecies relationships. Our results show that the strongest influence on tree–human relationships originates from human lifestyles and nature connections. Consequently, we identified three main types of human–tree relationships: (1) Admiring relationships towards large, old and charismatic trees, primarily grounded in sensory and emotional experiences, are common among urban nature‐loving people. (2) Nurturing relationships that occur with young trees in people's own gardens, which is most typical for rural outdoorspeople owning houses. (3) Nostalgic relationships are associated with trees with symbolic value in the memories of people who no longer have a material connection to an important environment. Our study revealed that the affection of humans for trees in their close environment strongly varied in emotional intensity and practical actions related to trees. We provide new knowledge of the correlations between human and tree characteristics in forming their interspecies relationship and how this relationship affects human emotional well‐being. Based on our findings, we suggest that understanding human–nature interdependence helps to sustain and create emotionally supportive multispecies environments through green design and management. Read the free Plain Language Summary for this article on the Journal blog.

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“…[21,22] A decrease in wind speed tends to increase the pollutant load owing to the poor ventilation ability and trapping effect at the leeward wall when the wind direction is perpendicular. [23,24] The intensity of this phenomenon depends on the wind direction, aspect ratio, number, distribution, and species of trees, as well as the density and porosity of vegetation. Moreover, this trapping effect mostly intensifies during winter.…”

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confidence: 99%

Assessment of air quality benefits of vegetation in an urban‐industrial region of India by integrating air monitoring with i‐Tree Eco model

Vashist,

Kumar,

Singh

2024

CLEAN Soil Air Water

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In the last few years, urban trees have emerged as an effective nature‐based solution to mitigate increasing air pollutant levels due to urbanization and industrialization. This study aims to assess the synergistic effect of urban trees on improving air quality by combining real‐time PM2.5 monitoring with the i‐Tree Eco model. The monitoring was conducted during rush hours with high traffic volume and during non‐rush hours, in both the tree alley and a non‐tree road section within the industrial areas of the north‐west region of the National Capital Territory of Delhi, India. The i‐Tree Eco model was run using the diameter at breast height values of tree species present in the study area, and the PM2.5 reduction ability of the trees was quantified. The results from both approaches indicated that urban trees can significantly reduce the traffic‐fed PM2.5 concentrations. Therefore, it is suggested that tree plantations be integrated into air pollution management strategies in urbanized regions with high traffic volumes. Although this study explores the initial link between trees and air quality in Delhi, further research incorporating local wind speed and direction measurements would provide a more comprehensive understanding of how trees influence air quality in any highly polluted urban setting.

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How trees affect urban air quality: It depends on the source

Cited by 16 publications

References 42 publications

A conservative immersed boundary method for the multi-physics urban large-eddy simulation model uDALES v2.0

A conservative immersed boundary method for the multi-physics urban large-eddy simulation model uDALES v2.0

Do you have a tree friend?—Human–tree relationships in Finland

Assessment of air quality benefits of vegetation in an urban‐industrial region of India by integrating air monitoring with i‐Tree Eco model

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