Evaluating the urban heat island phenomenon from a spatial planning viewpoint. A systematic review

Authors

  • Federica Isola Department of Civil and Environmental Engineering and Architecture, University of Cagliari http://orcid.org/0000-0003-0482-0404
  • Federica Leone Department of Civil and Environmental Engineering and Architecture, University of Cagliari http://orcid.org/0000-0003-1071-2768
  • Rossana Pittau Department of Civil and Environmental Engineering and Architecture, University of Cagliar

DOI:

https://doi.org/10.6093/1970-9870/10306

Keywords:

Urban heat island, Local climate regulation, Spatial planning

Abstract

The increasing rate of urbanization and continuous population growth in urban areas leads to several problems, including the emergence of urban heat islands (UHI), defined as urban areas where temperatures are higher than in the surrounding rural areas. UHIs have negative impacts on the health of populations and lead to increased energy consumption for cooling. One of the main causes of higher temperatures in urban areas and, therefore, the creation of UHIs is impervious surfaces, which in turn lead to poor thermal comfort in cities. Ecosystem services and, in particular, the ecosystem service of local climate regulation are valuable tools to mitigate the effects of UHI. The contribution reviews the existing literature concerning the mitigation of heat island effects through ecosystem services, in order to understand how they are studied and analyzed in the international scenario. The proposed methodological approach is based on a framework of analysis of the scientific contributions published in the last fifteen years on the subject of UHI, investigating the phenomenon through an interpretation key based on the issues addressed, the methods used and the spatial scales to which these methods have been applied.

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Author Biographies

Federica Isola, Department of Civil and Environmental Engineering and Architecture, University of Cagliari

She is a building engineer, and a Doctor of Research in Engineering and Natural Sciences (Italy, 2012). She is currently a research fellow at the Department of Civil and Environmental Engineering and Architecture of the University of Cagliari.

Federica Leone, Department of Civil and Environmental Engineering and Architecture, University of Cagliari

She is a building engineer, a Doctor of Research in Land Engineering (Italy, 2013), and an MSc in International Planning and Development (UK, 2012). She is currently an Assistant Professor at the Department of Civil and Environmental Engineering and Architecture of the University of Cagliari. She is presently teaching at the Department of Civil and Environmental Engineering and Architecture of the University of Cagliari in the Undergraduate Program in Environmental and Territorial Engineering (Regional and Urban Planning).

Rossana Pittau, Department of Civil and Environmental Engineering and Architecture, University of Cagliar

She is an architect. She is currently a PhD student in the PhD program in Civil Engineering and Architecture at the University of Cagliari.

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Published

2023-11-30

How to Cite

Isola, F., Leone, F., & Pittau, R. (2023). Evaluating the urban heat island phenomenon from a spatial planning viewpoint. A systematic review. TeMA - Journal of Land Use, Mobility and Environment, (2), 75–93. https://doi.org/10.6093/1970-9870/10306

Issue

2023: Burn or sink. Planning and managing the land

Section

Burn or sink. Planning and managing the land

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