Urban heat mitigation by green and blue infrastructure: Drivers, effectiveness, and future needs

Prashant Kumar; Sisay E. Debele; Soheila Khalili; Christos H. Halios; Jeetendra Sahani; Nasrin Aghamohammadi; Maria de Fatima Andrade; Maria Athanassiadou; Kamaldeep Bhui; Nerea Calvillo; Shi Jie Cao; Frederic Coulon; Jill L. Edmondson; David Fletcher; Edmilson Dias de Freitas; Hai Guo; Matthew C. Hort; Madhusudan Katti; Thomas Rodding Kjeldsen; Steffen Lehmann; Giuliano Maselli Locosselli; Shelagh K. Malham; Lidia Morawska; Rajan Parajuli; Christopher D.F. Rogers; Runming Yao; Fang Wang; Jannis Wenk; Laurence Jones

doi:10.1016/j.xinn.2024.100588

Urban heat mitigation by green and blue infrastructure: Drivers, effectiveness, and future needs

Prashant Kumar, Sisay E. Debele, Soheila Khalili, Christos H. Halios, Jeetendra Sahani, Nasrin Aghamohammadi, Maria de Fatima Andrade, Maria Athanassiadou, Kamaldeep Bhui, Nerea Calvillo, Shi Jie Cao, Frederic Coulon, Jill L. Edmondson, David Fletcher, Edmilson Dias de Freitas, Hai Guo, Matthew C. Hort, Madhusudan Katti, Thomas Rodding Kjeldsen, Steffen LehmannGiuliano Maselli Locosselli, Shelagh K. Malham, Lidia Morawska, Rajan Parajuli, Christopher D.F. Rogers, Runming Yao, Fang Wang, Jannis Wenk, Laurence Jones

Research output: Contribution to journal › Review article › peer-review

40 Citations (SciVal)

Abstract

The combination of urbanization and global warming leads to urban overheating and compounds the frequency and intensity of extreme heat events due to climate change. Yet, the risk of urban overheating can be mitigated by urban green-blue-grey infrastructure (GBGI), such as parks, wetlands, and engineered greening, which have the potential to effectively reduce summer air temperatures. Despite many reviews, the evidence bases on quantified GBGI cooling benefits remains partial and the practical recommendations for implementation are unclear. This systematic literature review synthesizes the evidence base for heat mitigation and related co-benefits, identifies knowledge gaps, and proposes recommendations for their implementation to maximize their benefits. After screening 27,486 papers, 202 were reviewed, based on 51 GBGI types categorized under 10 main divisions. Certain GBGI (green walls, parks, street trees) have been well researched for their urban cooling capabilities. However, several other GBGI have received negligible (zoological garden, golf course, estuary) or minimal (private garden, allotment) attention. The most efficient air cooling was observed in botanical gardens (5.0 ± 3.5°C), wetlands (4.9 ± 3.2°C), green walls (4.1 ± 4.2°C), street trees (3.8 ± 3.1°C), and vegetated balconies (3.8 ± 2.7°C). Under changing climate conditions (2070–2100) with consideration of RCP8.5, there is a shift in climate subtypes, either within the same climate zone (e.g., Dfa to Dfb and Cfb to Cfa) or across other climate zones (e.g., Dfb [continental warm-summer humid] to BSk [dry, cold semi-arid] and Cwa [temperate] to Am [tropical]). These shifts may result in lower efficiency for the current GBGI in the future. Given the importance of multiple services, it is crucial to balance their functionality, cooling performance, and other related co-benefits when planning for the future GBGI. This global GBGI heat mitigation inventory can assist policymakers and urban planners in prioritizing effective interventions to reduce the risk of urban overheating, filling research gaps, and promoting community resilience.

Original language	English
Article number	100588
Number of pages	22
Journal	The Innovation
Volume	5
Issue number	2
Early online date	7 Feb 2024
DOIs	https://doi.org/10.1016/j.xinn.2024.100588
Publication status	Published - 4 Mar 2024

Funding

This work has been commissioned by the UKRI ( EPSRC , NERC , AHRC ) and funded by RECLAIM Network Plus project ( EP/W034034/1 ; EP/W033984 ) under its synthesis review series. The following authors acknowledge the funding received through their grants: P.K. and L.J. (NE/X002799/1 ; NE/X002772/1 ); L.J. (H2020 REGREEN, EU Grant agreement No. 821016; 2021YFE93100 ); G.M.L. ( FAPESP 2019/08783-0 ); C.D.F.R. ( EP/R017727 ); L.M. (ARC Grant No. IC220100012 ); H.G. (RGC Grant No. C5024-21G ); M.F.A. and E.D.F. (FAPESP Grant No. 2016/18438-0 ; 2022/02365-5 ); S.J.C. (NSFC Grant No. 52225005 ), R.Y. (NSFC Grant No. 52278090 ); F.W. (NKP Grant No. 2020YFC180700 ); J.E. ( NE/X000443/1 ); and F.C. ( NE/M010961/1 ; NE/V002171/1 ). The authors thank Andrea Sofia Majjul Fajardo for her contribution to the initial design of certain figures. We also thank the team members of GCARE and its Guildford Living Lab (GLL), as well as the participants in the RECLAIM Network Plus Horizon Scanning Workshop. This work has been commissioned by the UKRI (EPSRC, NERC, AHRC) and funded by RECLAIM Network Plus project (EP/W034034/1; EP/W033984) under its synthesis review series. The following authors acknowledge the funding received through their grants: P.K. and L.J. (NE/X002799/1; NE/X002772/1); L.J. (H2020 REGREEN, EU Grant agreement No. 821016; 2021YFE93100); G.M.L. (FAPESP 2019/08783-0); C.D.F.R. (EP/R017727); L.M. (ARC Grant No. IC220100012); H.G. (RGC Grant No. C5024-21G); M.F.A. and E.D.F. (FAPESP Grant No. 2016/18438-0; 2022/02365-5); S.J.C. (NSFC Grant No. 52225005), R.Y. (NSFC Grant No. 52278090); F.W. (NKP Grant No. 2020YFC180700); J.E. (NE/X000443/1); and F.C. (NE/M010961/1; NE/V002171/1). The authors thank Andrea Sofia Majjul Fajardo for her contribution to the initial design of certain figures. We also thank the team members of GCARE and its Guildford Living Lab (GLL), as well as the participants in the RECLAIM Network Plus Horizon Scanning Workshop. P.K.: conceptualization, methods, supervision, project administration, funding, analysis, writing - original draft, writing - reviewing and editing; S.D.: conceptualization, methods, data extraction, data analysis (figures, tables), writing - original draft, writing - reviewing and editing; S.K.: data extraction, writing - reviewing and editing; C.H.: data extraction, writing - reviewing and editing; J.S.: writing - reviewing and editing; N.A.: writing - review and editing; M.d.F.A.: writing - review and editing; M.A.: writing - review and editing; K.B.: writing - review and editing; N.C.: writing - review and editing; S.C.: writing - review and editing; F.C.: writing - review and editing; J.E.E.: writing - review and editing; D.F.: writing - review and editing; E.D.d.F.: writing - review and editing; H.G.: writing - review and editing; M.C.H.: writing - review and editing; M.K.: writing - review and editing; T.R.K.: writing - review and editing; S.L.: writing - review and editing; G.M.L.: writing - review and editing; S.K.M.: writing - review and editing; L.M.: writing - review and editing; R.P.: writing - review and editing; C.R.: writing - review and editing; R.Y.: writing - review and editing; F.W.: writing - review and editing; J.W.: writing - review and editing; L.J.: conceptualization, methods, writing - review and editing. The authors’ names appear in alphabetical order between the core writing team and the anchor authors. All authors commented on the draft manuscript and assisted in the conceptual development of the text, tables, figures, and the overall cohesiveness and proofreading of the paper. The authors declare no competing interests.

Funders	Funder number
GCARE
Guildford Living Lab
RECLAIM	EP/W034034/1, NE/X002799/1, EP/W033984, NE/X002772/1
Research Grants Council (RGC) of Hong Kong	2022/02365-5, 2016/18438-0, C5024-21G
Horizon 2020 Framework Programme
UK Research and Innovation
Engineering and Physical Sciences Research Council
Arts and Humanities Research Council
Natural Environment Research Council
European Commission	2021YFE93100, 821016
Australian Research Council	IC220100012
Fundação de Amparo à Pesquisa do Estado de São Paulo	2019/08783-0, EP/R017727
National Natural Science Foundation of China	NE/X000443/1, 2020YFC180700, NE/V002171/1, 52278090, NE/M010961/1, 52225005

Keywords

climate change
heat mitigation
heat stress
nature-based solutions
sustainable development goals
urban cooling

ASJC Scopus subject areas

General

UN SDGs

This output contributes to the following UN Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs)

Access to Document

10.1016/j.xinn.2024.100588Licence: CC BY

Cite this

Kumar, P., Debele, S. E., Khalili, S., Halios, C. H., Sahani, J., Aghamohammadi, N., Andrade, M. D. F., Athanassiadou, M., Bhui, K., Calvillo, N., Cao, S. J., Coulon, F., Edmondson, J. L., Fletcher, D., Dias de Freitas, E., Guo, H., Hort, M. C., Katti, M., Kjeldsen, T. R., ... Jones, L. (2024). Urban heat mitigation by green and blue infrastructure: Drivers, effectiveness, and future needs. The Innovation, 5(2), Article 100588. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.xinn.2024.100588

Kumar, P, Debele, SE, Khalili, S, Halios, CH, Sahani, J, Aghamohammadi, N, Andrade, MDF, Athanassiadou, M, Bhui, K, Calvillo, N, Cao, SJ, Coulon, F, Edmondson, JL, Fletcher, D, Dias de Freitas, E, Guo, H, Hort, MC, Katti, M, Kjeldsen, TR, Lehmann, S, Locosselli, GM, Malham, SK, Morawska, L, Parajuli, R, Rogers, CDF, Yao, R, Wang, F, Wenk, J & Jones, L 2024, 'Urban heat mitigation by green and blue infrastructure: Drivers, effectiveness, and future needs', The Innovation, vol. 5, no. 2, 100588. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.xinn.2024.100588

@article{d45ac11d240245599aece679a605b7fe,

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abstract = "The combination of urbanization and global warming leads to urban overheating and compounds the frequency and intensity of extreme heat events due to climate change. Yet, the risk of urban overheating can be mitigated by urban green-blue-grey infrastructure (GBGI), such as parks, wetlands, and engineered greening, which have the potential to effectively reduce summer air temperatures. Despite many reviews, the evidence bases on quantified GBGI cooling benefits remains partial and the practical recommendations for implementation are unclear. This systematic literature review synthesizes the evidence base for heat mitigation and related co-benefits, identifies knowledge gaps, and proposes recommendations for their implementation to maximize their benefits. After screening 27,486 papers, 202 were reviewed, based on 51 GBGI types categorized under 10 main divisions. Certain GBGI (green walls, parks, street trees) have been well researched for their urban cooling capabilities. However, several other GBGI have received negligible (zoological garden, golf course, estuary) or minimal (private garden, allotment) attention. The most efficient air cooling was observed in botanical gardens (5.0 ± 3.5°C), wetlands (4.9 ± 3.2°C), green walls (4.1 ± 4.2°C), street trees (3.8 ± 3.1°C), and vegetated balconies (3.8 ± 2.7°C). Under changing climate conditions (2070–2100) with consideration of RCP8.5, there is a shift in climate subtypes, either within the same climate zone (e.g., Dfa to Dfb and Cfb to Cfa) or across other climate zones (e.g., Dfb [continental warm-summer humid] to BSk [dry, cold semi-arid] and Cwa [temperate] to Am [tropical]). These shifts may result in lower efficiency for the current GBGI in the future. Given the importance of multiple services, it is crucial to balance their functionality, cooling performance, and other related co-benefits when planning for the future GBGI. This global GBGI heat mitigation inventory can assist policymakers and urban planners in prioritizing effective interventions to reduce the risk of urban overheating, filling research gaps, and promoting community resilience.",

keywords = "climate change, heat mitigation, heat stress, nature-based solutions, sustainable development goals, urban cooling",

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AB - The combination of urbanization and global warming leads to urban overheating and compounds the frequency and intensity of extreme heat events due to climate change. Yet, the risk of urban overheating can be mitigated by urban green-blue-grey infrastructure (GBGI), such as parks, wetlands, and engineered greening, which have the potential to effectively reduce summer air temperatures. Despite many reviews, the evidence bases on quantified GBGI cooling benefits remains partial and the practical recommendations for implementation are unclear. This systematic literature review synthesizes the evidence base for heat mitigation and related co-benefits, identifies knowledge gaps, and proposes recommendations for their implementation to maximize their benefits. After screening 27,486 papers, 202 were reviewed, based on 51 GBGI types categorized under 10 main divisions. Certain GBGI (green walls, parks, street trees) have been well researched for their urban cooling capabilities. However, several other GBGI have received negligible (zoological garden, golf course, estuary) or minimal (private garden, allotment) attention. The most efficient air cooling was observed in botanical gardens (5.0 ± 3.5°C), wetlands (4.9 ± 3.2°C), green walls (4.1 ± 4.2°C), street trees (3.8 ± 3.1°C), and vegetated balconies (3.8 ± 2.7°C). Under changing climate conditions (2070–2100) with consideration of RCP8.5, there is a shift in climate subtypes, either within the same climate zone (e.g., Dfa to Dfb and Cfb to Cfa) or across other climate zones (e.g., Dfb [continental warm-summer humid] to BSk [dry, cold semi-arid] and Cwa [temperate] to Am [tropical]). These shifts may result in lower efficiency for the current GBGI in the future. Given the importance of multiple services, it is crucial to balance their functionality, cooling performance, and other related co-benefits when planning for the future GBGI. This global GBGI heat mitigation inventory can assist policymakers and urban planners in prioritizing effective interventions to reduce the risk of urban overheating, filling research gaps, and promoting community resilience.

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Urban heat mitigation by green and blue infrastructure: Drivers, effectiveness, and future needs

Abstract

Funding

Keywords

ASJC Scopus subject areas

UN SDGs

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