Assessing the Benefits from Retrofitting Green Roofs in Mediterranean, Using Environmental Modelling, GIS and Very High Spatial Resolution Remote Sensing Data: The Example of Thessaloniki, Greece

Abstract

In the Mediterranean area, rural abandonment and the rapid urbanisation after the 1950's led to complex environmental problems, such as the exploitation of natural resources, the environmental pollution, whilst the unstrained urban growth caused excessive pressure on the existing infrastructure, which affects buildings, public transportation, water quality and public health. Various studies demonstrate that the implementation of green roof technology can moderate environmental problems, through the reduction of heat flux and solar reflectivity, the minimisation of buildings' energy consumption, the air pollution removal, the storm water runoff reduction, the air cooling and the effective management of the urban heat island effect. In this framework, the aim of this study is to assess the green roof potential and the quantification of its benefits over Thessaloniki, Greece's second largest city. In order to do so, very high spatial resolution satellite image and natural colour orthoimagery were used along with a geographical object-based image analysis approach. Carbon sequestration potential, rainwater retention and energy conservation were estimated based on coefficients adopted after a comprehensive literature review and actual dynamic energy simulations.

Innovation technologies in Green Roof systems

“…If the green roof had been installed as part of the original design of the building and the ability of the green roof to reduce cooling and heating requirements had been known, there would have been a big potential of energy efficiency of building. The urban scale extrapolation of the estimated energy savings with the dynamic energy simulations of the typical MF buildings shows that there can be green roofs in the city of Thessaloniki with reduced heating and cooling consumptions up to 5% and 16% respectively [2]. The energy savings both in heating and cooling are maximized underneath the green roof.…”

Detection of Green Roofs through Satellite Imagery Using Faster R-CNN

“…However, research that focuses in this area is still developing and thus, there is a lack of data to create models for this purpose. Past studies have used the NDVI to assess the vegetation of a city and the ability of the city to retrofit buildings to have green roofs [80], [81].…”

Unveiling the Complexity of Earth's Dynamic Ecosystems: Harnessing the Power of Remote Sensing for Environmental Analysis

“…Remote sensing data has also proven crucial in studying urban heat islands, assessing air quality, and understanding the environmental consequences of urbanization. When remote sensing data is integrated with socio-economic information, it provides invaluable insights into the intricate interplay between urban environments and human activities (Ahmed & Kaiser, 2014;Coskun & Alparslan, 2009;Martinez-Grana & Valdes Rodriguez, 2016;Theodoridou et al, 2017). It is essential to underscore that remote sensing plays a pivotal role in evaluating and managing natural hazards.…”