How Vulnerable Are Urban Regeneration Sites to Climate Change in Busan, South Korea?

Abstract

Research on the risks of climate change to urban regeneration projects has been insufficient to date. Therefore, this study aims to compare and analyze the degree of risk of climate change impact on areas with and without urban regeneration projects (for Eup, Myeon, and Dong regional units) in Busan, South Korea. In this study, (1) climate change risk indicators were extracted based on the concept of risk (hazard, vulnerability, and exposure), (2) a spatial analysis was performed using a graphic information system (GIS), and (3) the primary influencing factors were derived through a logistic regression analysis. The principal results show that urban regeneration areas have a higher risk of climate change impact than other areas. The results indicate that urban regeneration areas have a higher population density per area and more impermeable or flooded areas can increase the risk of climate change impacts. We also discuss strategies to develop resilient cities and climate change adaptation policies for future urban regeneration projects.

Exploring Urban Compactness and Greenhouse Gas Emissions in the Road Transport Sector: A Case Study of Big Cities in South Korea

“…Planners should consider upgrading the thermal efficiency of buildings to reduce both the cost of energy use in residential and commercial sectors and GHG emissions from the construction sector [34]. While residential energy use shows significant variability between temperate and cold climates [35], its correlation with urban compactness is not as strong as with energy use in the road transport sector [17,25,36,37]. Therefore, this study focused its analysis on GHG emissions from the road transport sector.…”

“…These studies have suggested that factors including city size, policy measures such as fuel taxes, and advanced road transport infrastructure might be more effective in reducing energy use and GHG emissions. Furthermore, several studies have indicated that at the same level of compactness, polycentric cities emit less GHGs than monocentric ones [22][23][24][25].…”

“…Urban compactness is used to measure urban form and spatial structure, which are concepts that are simultaneously similar and different [12,[25][26][27]. Moreover, urban compactness quantifies population distribution.…”

“…Various studies have adopted distinct criteria for constructing urban compactness indicators, leading to differing interpretations of the connection between GHG emissions and urban compactness. For instance, Kang [25] assessed urban compactness by focusing on indicators related to population distribution, including Moran's I, entropy, and the Gini coefficient. In addition, Ha [12] evaluated urban compactness by considering factors such as development density and street connectivity, which are congruent with Ewing's research [27,28].…”

Enhancing Sustainable Urban Regeneration through Smart Technologies: An Assessment of Local Urban Regeneration Strategic Plans in Korea

“…By employing the AHP analysis and experts' brainstorming, Kim [30] found industrial/economic and population/social aspects were highlighted more often than other elements within existing urban regeneration projects. Kang et al [31] analyzed risk indicators to investigate the degree of risk to climate change in urban regeneration project areas in Busan, Korea and discovered that those sites were more vulnerable to climate change, compared to other aging city centers. Additionally, other studies have evaluated the success and effectiveness of urban regeneration projects by conducting in-depth interviews and employing various performance assessment indicators.…”