A GIS Assessment of the Green Space Percentage in a Big Industrial City (Dnipro, Ukraine)

Abstract

Green spaces in an industrially polluted city are extremely important for the physical activity and mental health of its inhabitants. The study aim was to analyze the urban green space dynamics and the greening degree of different functional zones typical for a big Ukrainian industrial city (Dnipro, Ukraine). This article used the remote sensing methods and geographic information systems (GIS) to assess the percentage of green spaces in the city of Dnipro, its eight districts, parks, ravines, and sanitary protection zones. The Normalized Difference Vegetation Index (NDVI) was used for mapping the urban green spaces within the ravines, parks, and sanitary protection zones. According to our results, 67% of Dnipro city is greened (NDVI >0.3). On average, there are 219 m2 of green spaces per person, which is 24 and 4 times more than the minimum and optimal values recommended by the World Health Organization (WHO), respectively. It was found that the NDVI values were significantly lower in the territories of sanitary protection zones, compared to the other functional zones. The results of NDVI analysis indicate a significant variation of the studied parameter during the vegetative season, with two typical peaks of the green space vegetative activity. The peak of plant vegetative activity occurs in the first decade of June, followed by slight decline for 2–3 weeks, then there is another increase in the activity, reaching the maximum in mid-July. Even in autumn, the photosynthetic activity remains relatively high for most of the urban areas, declining only from mid-October. In addition, a method and algorithm for estimating and standardizing the level of the urban area greening based on the remote sensing methods and zonal statistics tools are proposed.

Assessment of the State of the Landscaping System in the City of Aktobe, the Republic of Kazakhstan, under Conditions of Man-Made Load Using Remote Sensing

“…Previous studies had limited coverage in assessing the state of the city's greening system under conditions of man-made load. Some aspects were missed, such as the impact of technogenic factors on the health of residents, the environmental consequences of technogenic activity, and the effectiveness of green spaces in mitigating negative consequences [27][28][29].…”

Identification of Ecological Characteristics of Vegetation Distributed in Mt. Chilbosan, Gyeonggi-do

“…Urban forests not only play a major role in improving the urban environment through alleviating microclimates, preserving natural ecosystems, and absorbing carbon (Yang et al, 2022;Buchavyi et al, 2023;Russo and Cirella, 2018), but are also closely related to quality of life, having effects such as promoting leisure activities and creating and maintaining good landscapes (Lee et al, 1993;Kim et al, 2022;Chang et al, 2021;World Health Organization, 2012;Jang et al, 2002;Kwon et al, 2004;Chiesura, 2004;Lee et al, 2018). From an ecological perspective, they have biodiversity and environmental conservation functions, but have different species composition and vegetation structure from natural forests (No, 2015;Dwyer et al, 1992).…”

“…26, No. 6, 2023 of humans and other living things in the environment (Buchavyi et al, 2023;Zhang et al, 2021;Acharya and Acharya, 2023). Even in South Korea, the population began to flow into the Seoul metropolitan region following its period of rapid economic growth in the 1970s (Choi, 1984).…”

“…Urban green spaces are known to have environmental and ecological functions that include maintaining biodiversity, reducing noise and air pollution, and mitigating extreme climate events, as well as other effects such as providing opportunities for exposure to nature, and improving quality of life and health (World Health Organization, 2017). In addition, it was reported that there is a need to create green spaces in downtown areas because it is important for residents' physical activities and mental health (Buchavyi et al, 2023). According to Russo and Cirella (2018), and the World Health Organization (2012), humans need daily contact with nature; furthermore, they concluded that urban green space (UGS) is very important for them even at a societal level as urban residents are happier and healthier when the minimum UGS value required per capita is exceeded.…”

“…Vegetation contained in urban forests not only has the function of preserving the ecosystem and urban environment from an ecological perspective, but is also a key element in maintaining the well-being of residents and the sustainability of cities (Chiesura, 2004). In particular, it plays a major role in alleviating urban heat islands and microclimates and improving the environment (Yang et al, 2022;Buchavyi et al, 2023;Russo and Cirella, 2018), while also being closely related to quality of life through promoting leisure activities and forming aesthetic landscapes (Kim et al, 2022;Chang et al, 2021;World Health Organization, 2012). However, it was reported that as such vegetation has a different struc-ture from that in natural forests (No, 2015;Dwyer et al, 1992), accurate surveys and management are necessary to strengthen the overall ecosystem services, including improving the environment and quality of life.…”