Cooling Effects and Regulating Ecosystem Services Provided by Urban Trees—Novel Analysis Approaches Using Urban Tree Cadastre Data

Scholz, Tobias; Hof, Angela; Schmitt, Thomas

doi:10.3390/su10030712

Cited by 52 publications

(38 citation statements)

References 40 publications

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“…Along with shelters, another potential climate change adaptation strategy for public transit systems is planting trees near bus stops. Tree planting is a proven heat management strategy [ 25 , 28 ], with researchers finding street trees to reduce direct and thermal radiation by 58% [ 29 ]. Yet, this valuable green infrastructure has been found to be inequitably distributed: in 25 US cities, researchers have measured less tree canopy in census tracts composed of majority low-income and Latinx populations than in other tracts [ 30 ].…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Heat-Moderating Effects of Bus Stop Shelters and Tree Shade on Public Transport Ridership

Lanza

Durand

2021

IJERPH

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Rising temperatures threaten the resilience of public transit systems. We determined whether bus stop shelters and tree canopy surrounding bus stops moderated the effect of warm season temperatures on ridership in Austin, Texas, and whether shelters and trees were equitably distributed. For bus stops (n = 2271) of Capital Metropolitan Transportation Authority, boardings per bus were measured 1 April–30 September 2019. Air temperature data originated from the Camp Mabry weather station. Tree canopy was calculated by classification of high-resolution aerial imagery from the National Agriculture Imagery Program. Data on race, ethnicity, poverty level, median age, and bus commuters within census tracts of bus stops originated from the 2014–2018 American Community Survey. Using multilevel negative binomial regression models, we found that shelters did not moderate the effect of high temperatures on ridership (p > 0.05). During high temperatures, each one-percent increase in tree canopy was associated with a lesser decrease (1.6%) in ridership compared to if there were no trees (1.7%) (p < 0.001). In general, shelters and trees were equitably distributed. Insignificant or modest effects of shelters and trees on ridership during high temperatures may be attributed to the transit dependency of riders. For climate change adaptation, we recommend tree planting at bus stops to protect from ridership losses and unhealthy exposure to extreme heat.

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Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Heat-Moderating Effects of Bus Stop Shelters and Tree Shade on Public Transport Ridership

Lanza

Durand

2021

IJERPH

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“…In comparison, Acer pseudoplatanus grew 0.29 m per year and Sorbus aucuparia 0.65 m per year (Zerbe & Kreyer, ). As horse‐chestnut matures, height growth slows, but annual increment is maintained such that in the city of Duisburg, Germany, Scholz, Hof, and Schmitt () recorded horse‐chestnut reaching 25 m tall at a DBH of 111 cm while Betula pendula at the same height had a diameter of <64 cm.…”

Section: Response To Environmentmentioning

confidence: 99%

Biological Flora of the British Isles:Aesculus hippocastanum

et al. 2019

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This account presents information on all aspects of the biology of Aesculus hippocastanum L. (horse‐chestnut) that are relevant to understanding its ecological characteristics and behaviour. The main topics are presented within the standard framework of the Biological Flora of the British Isles: distribution, habitat, communities, responses to biotic factors, responses to environment, structure and physiology, phenology, floral and seed characters, herbivores and disease, history and conservation. Aesculus hippocastanum is a large deciduous tree native to the Balkan Peninsula. Native populations are small (<10,000 trees total) and apparently in decline, but the tree has been widely planted in gardens and streets across Europe and other temperate areas from the 17th century onwards. It was voted the UK's favourite tree in a 2017 poll. As a British neophyte, it is occasionally naturalised in open wooded habitats. Horse‐chestnut is renowned for the beauty of its large (up to 30 cm long), upright panicles of white flowers, and for the large seeds (up to 42 g each) used in the formerly common children's game of “conkers.” More recently, the triterpene glycosides, extractable from various plant parts but especially the seeds, have been widely used in medicine. In much of Europe, horse‐chestnut is affected by chestnut bleeding canker (caused by Pseudomonas syringae pv. aesculi), the horse‐chestnut leaf miner Cameraria ohridella and the leaf blotch fungus Guignardia aesculi. The canker is likely to lead to death of <10% individuals, but seeds of plants infested with the leaf miner are 40%–50% smaller, which may affect long‐term establishment in non‐planted areas.

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“…A prominent example is the i-Tree model that can be used to estimate a broad range of ecosystem functions such as the air pollution removal, carbon sequestration, and building energy conservation (Nowak et al 2008 ; Endreny et al 2017 ). Among these services, energy estimates are related to the cooling function of trees (Scholz et al 2018 ), but are mainly related to tree shade (Mcpherson and Simpson 1999 ). Because cooling is arguably the most important ecosystem service regarding the mitigation of future climate change effects in cities, this function must be calculated explicitly, that is, the effects of stomatal conductance and water limitation must be clarified.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

A single tree model to consistently simulate cooling, shading, and pollution uptake of urban trees

et al. 2020

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Extremely high temperatures, which negatively affect the human health and plant performances, are becoming more frequent in cities. Urban green infrastructure, particularly trees, can mitigate this issue through cooling due to transpiration, and shading. Temperature regulation by trees depends on feedbacks among the climate, water supply, and plant physiology. However, in contrast to forest or general ecosystem models, most current urban tree models still lack basic processes, such as the consideration of soil water limitation, or have not been evaluated sufficiently. In this study, we present a new model that couples the soil water balance with energy calculations to assess the physiological responses and microclimate effects of a common urban street-tree species (Tilia cordata Mill.) on temperature regulation. We contrast two urban sites in Munich, Germany, with different degree of surface sealing at which microclimate and transpiration had been measured. Simulations indicate that differences in wind speed and soil water supply can be made responsible for the differences in transpiration. Nevertheless, the calculation of the overall energy balance showed that the shading effect, which depends on the leaf area index and canopy cover, contributes the most to the temperature reduction at midday. Finally, we demonstrate that the consideration of soil water availability for stomatal conductance has realistic impacts on the calculation of gaseous pollutant uptake (e.g., ozone). In conclusion, the presented model has demonstrated its ability to quantify two major ecosystem services (temperature mitigation and air pollution removal) consistently in dependence on meteorological and site conditions.

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Cooling Effects and Regulating Ecosystem Services Provided by Urban Trees—Novel Analysis Approaches Using Urban Tree Cadastre Data

Cited by 52 publications

References 40 publications

Heat-Moderating Effects of Bus Stop Shelters and Tree Shade on Public Transport Ridership

Heat-Moderating Effects of Bus Stop Shelters and Tree Shade on Public Transport Ridership

Biological Flora of the British Isles:Aesculus hippocastanum

A single tree model to consistently simulate cooling, shading, and pollution uptake of urban trees

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