A new method for fine-scale assessments of the average urban Heat island over large areas and the effectiveness of nature-based solutions

By

Lauwaet, Dirk
De Nijs, Ton
Liekens, Inge
Hooyberghs, Hans
Verachtert, Els
Lefebvre, Wouter
De Ridder, Koen
Remme, Roy
Broekx, Steven

Type

Article

Date of Publication

2018-8-20

Original Publication

One ecosystem : ecology and sustainability data journal

Volume

3

Pages

1--7

Subjects

Ecosystem services mapping , nature-based solutions , Netherlands , Urban Heat Island , UrbClim model

Contributed by

Pensoft Publishers

Language

English

Published by

Sofia, Bulgaria Pensoft Publishers

Identifiers

DOI: https://doi.org/10.3897/oneeco.3.e24880

 

Abstract

People living in cities experience extra heat stress due to the so-called Urban Heat Island (UHI) effect. To gain an insight into the spatial variability of the UHI for the Netherlands, a detailed map (10 m horizontal resolution) has been calculated that shows the summer-averaged daily maximal UHI situation. The map is based on a relationship between the UHI, mean wind speed at 10 m height and the number of people living within a distance of 10 km, derived from simulations of over 100 European cities with the extensively validated urban climate model UrbClim. The cooling effect of green and blue infrastructure is also taken into account in the map, based on these simulation results. The presented map will help local authorities in defining target areas for climate adaptation measures and estimate the impact of nature-based solutions.