The Thermal Effect of Various Local Park Settings: A Simulation-Based Case Study of Sunshine Coast, Australia

Abstract

Local parks are widely used to mitigate urban heat islands. However, the increase of dry weather periods in subtropical climates has caused natural grass failure, leading some city councils to replace it with artificial grass. Therefore, this study investigates various local park settings to assess the performance of different ground covers (i.e., irrigated and non-irrigated natural grass, bare soil, and artificial grass) and the influence that tree proximity has on them, as well as the total thermal performance of the investigated local parks. This study finds that non-irrigated parks could harm park users’ health due to the high concentration of mean radiant temperature (MRT) around trees. Although the surface temperature of the artificial grass was higher (2.60 °C) than that of asphalt during periods of peak temperature, the parks using artificial grass performed better at reducing air temperature and enhancing thermal comfort than the ones with dry grass or bare soil, where both tree proximity and soil water content played significant roles. However, artificial grass negatively affected night cooling, resulting in a poorer daily performance. This study discusses the influence of various park settings on air temperature, MRT, thermal comfort, surface temperature, soil temperature, and water content. In addition, various recommendations and settings are offered to direct decision makers and future studies.

Exploring Influencing Factors and Innovative Solutions for Sustainable Water Management on Green Roofs: A Systematic Quantitative Review

“…Following current sustainable practices, rainwater is considered the primary source of water on green roofs in wet climates and a secondary source in dry climates [22]. Rainwater is classified as a non-polluted source [23].…”

“…Irrigation is the primary water source for green infrastructure in dry climates and a secondary source in wet climates [22]. The water for irrigation can be from several sources with different qualities.…”

“…For instance, Vijayaraghavan and Raja [57] proposed a mixture of expanded perlite, coco peat, exfoliated vermiculite, crushed bricks, and sand with a particle size ranging between 0.25 mm and 4 mm, which showed a water-holding capacity of 39.4% [57]. Several researchers also suggested the addition of gritty loam soil, perlitebased substrates, foam sheets, fibreglass, and biological additives, such as seaweed and hydrophilic gels, for the same aim [22,76]. A few examples are summarised in Table 4.…”

“…One example of such a system is the artificial irrigation system developed by Bandara and Balasooriya [121], which measures the surrounding climate status, calculates the average values and predicts the anticipated climatic status to determine the required amount of water for irrigation. Although irrigation systems are necessary to improve green roof performance from various aspects, the knowledge of irrigation practices and specifications on green roofs is still limited [22].…”