Cooling Effect of Urban Green Space: A Nature-Based Solution for Mitigation of Urban Heat

Abstract

Today, urban green space (UGS) is recognized as a nature-based solution to alleviate heat in urban environments by intensifying hot surfaces in urban areas. This chapter aims to provide a comprehensive understanding of the cooling effect of UGS, its characteristics, mechanisms, and their implementation in urban planning and design to combat urban warming concerns. This chapter aims to outline relevant contents in three sections: (1) Cooling effects of UGS: mechanisms and dimensions, which will be allocated to explore the diverse mechanisms that contribute to the cooling performance of UGS in urban areas regarding their physical and spatial features; (2) Quantification of the cooling effect of UGS: methods and implementations. This section will focus on recent quantitative methods and implementations at an urban scale to apply in urban planning and design processes; and (3) Planning and design of cooling cities: urban greening challenges and strategies will provide an overview of urban planning and design approaches, current challenges and recommending effective integrated solutions to improve cooling efficiency.