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Research on urban heat mitigation has been growing in recent years with many of the studies focusing on green infrastructure (GI) as a strategy to mitigate the adverse effects of an urban heat island (UHI). This paper aims at presenting a review of the range of findings from GI research for urban heat mitigation through a review of scientific articles published during the years 2009–2020. This research includes a review of the different types of GI and its contribution for urban heat mitigation and human thermal comfort. In addition to analysing different mitigation strategies, numerical simulation tools that are commonly used are also reviewed. It is seen that ENVI-met is one of the modelling tools that is considered as a reliable to simulate different mitigation strategies and hence has been widely used in the recent past. Considering its popularity in urban microclimate studies, this article also provides a review of ENVI-met simulation results that were reported in the reviewed papers. It was observed that the majority of the research was conducted on a limited spatial scale and focused on temperature and human thermal comfort.

Universities and higher education institutions play an important role in achieving a sustainable future through their teaching and by undertaking cutting edge research to combat climate change. There have been several efforts towards a sustainable future and achieving carbon neutrality at higher education institutions in Australia and around the world. This study has reviewed the sustainability strategies of numerous universities in Australia and has identified as study cases six universities that are committed to and leading the implementation of initiatives to achieve carbon neutrality. The initiatives implemented at the selected universities were classified into eight “sustainability categories”, namely, built environment, energy, food and gardens, GHG emissions, natural environment, resource and waste management, transport, and water. Among the selected leading universities in sustainability, Charles Sturt University and the University of Tasmania (UTAS) are the only universities in Australia certified as carbon neutral. An interesting aspect of this review is the way in which universities are implementing sustainability initiatives in line with their mission and strategies. Despite striving towards the same end goal of achieving carbon neutrality, different institutions offer individually unique approaches towards sustainability. For example, UTAS values the creation, expansion and dissemination of knowledge and the promotion of continual learning, which is clearly demonstrated through its initiatives and policies. The findings in this review are critical in identifying those institutions of higher education which are role models in their strong commitment to achieving carbon neutrality. Such role model universities can pave the way for similar climate action at other universities.

Blue-green infrastructure (BGI) is defined as a strategically planned network of natural and semi-natural areas with other environmental features designed and managed to deliver a wide range of ecosystem services, which include microclimate regulation and enhanced human thermal comfort. While green infrastructure is widely known to be capable of mitigating the adverse effects of urban heat island, the effect of blue infrastructure to regulate thermal comfort is still poorly understood. This study investigates several blue-green-infrastructure (BGI) scenarios in the central business district (CBD) of Melbourne, Australia to assess their effects on microclimate and human thermal comfort. Three-dimensional microclimatic modelling software, ENVI-met, was used to simulate the microclimate and human thermal comfort. Physiological equivalent temperature (PET) was used to quantify the level of thermal comfort in selected research areas. Ten different scenarios were simulated, which included those based on green roofs, green walls, trees, ponds and fountains. The simulations suggest that green roofs and green walls in the high-rise building environment have a small temperature reduction in its surrounding area by up to 0.47 °C and 0.27 °C, respectively, and there is no noticeable improvement in the level of thermal perception. The tree-based scenarios decrease temperature by up to 0.93 °C and improve the thermal perception from hot to warm. Scenarios based on water bodies and fountains decrease the temperature by up to 0.51 °C and 1.48 °C, respectively, yet they cannot improve the thermal perception of the area. A deeper water body has a better microclimate improvement as compared to a shallow one. The temperature reduction in the fountain scenario tends to be local and the effect could only be felt within a certain radius from the fountain.

Water-sensitive urban design (WSUD) has been widely used in cities to mitigate the negative consequences of urbanization and climate change. One of the WSUD strategies that is becoming popular is green roofs (GR) which offer a wide range of ecosystem services. Research on this WSUD strategy has been continuously increasing in terms of both quantity and quality. This paper presents a comprehensive review quantifying the benefits of GRs in papers published since 2010. More precisely, this review aims to provide up-to-date information about each GR benefit and how they have improved over the last decade. In agreement with previous reviews, extensive GRs were considerably researched, as compared to very limited studies on intensive and semi-intensive GRs. Each GR ecosystem service was specifically quantified, and an imbalance of GR research focus was identified, wherein urban heat- and runoff-related benefits were outstandingly popular when compared to other benefits. The results also highlight the recent introduction of hybrid GRs, which demonstrated improvements in GR performance. Furthermore, limitations of GRs, obstacles to their uptake, and inconsistent research findings were also identified in this review. Accordingly, opportunities for future research were pointed out in this review. This paper also recommends future studies to improve upon well-known GR benefits by exploring and applying more innovative GR construction techniques and materials. At the same time, further studies need to be undertaken on inadequately studied GR benefits, such as reduced noise and air pollution. In spite of the existence of reliable modelling tools, their application to study the effects of large-scale implementations of GRs has been restricted. Insufficient information from such research is likely to restrict large-scale implementations of GRs. As a result, further studies are required to transform the GR concept into one of the widely accepted and implemented WSUD strategies.

In recent years, social vulnerability has gained much importance in academic studies. However, social indices are rarely combined and validated with exposure and resilience components. This study provides an integrated analysis of the flood exposure and social vulnerability of rural households in a case area of Charsadda District, Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, Pakistan. A conceptual framework was designed (based on the MOVE framework) as a guideline and key indicators were identified. For the exposure component, parameters such as elevation, flooded locations, and distance from the river were endorsed to understand flood mechanisms. For populating socioeconomic variables, questionnaire-based interviews were conducted with 210 households. The results were presented through ArcGIS-generated maps. The most significant indicators interplaying with high vulnerability were exposure-related indicators. The findings showed that the southern areas, including Agra, Daulat Pura, and Hisar Yasinzai were highly vulnerable due to having the highest number of flood locations, lowest elevations, and shortest distances from rivers, as well as larger household sizes, more elderly, children and women, illiteracy rates, and weak financial capacity. Understanding such dominant indicators and areas where high social vulnerability and high exposure converge can inform the authorities in mitigating both social and physical flood vulnerability.

Groundwater supplies approximately half of the total global domestic water demand. It also complements the seasonal and annual variabilities of surface water. Monitoring of groundwater fluctuations is mandatory to envisage the composition of terrestrial water storage. This research provides an overview of traditional techniques and detailed discussion on the modern tools and methods to monitor groundwater fluctuations along with advanced applications. The groundwater monitoring can broadly be classified into three groups. The first one is characterized by the point measurement to measure the groundwater levels using classical instruments and electronic and physical investigation techniques. The second category involves the extensive use of satellite data to ensure robust and cost-effective real-time monitoring to assess the groundwater storage variations. Many satellite data are in use to find groundwater indirectly. However, GRACE satellite data supported with other satellite products, computational tools, GIS techniques, and hydro-climate models have proven the most effective for groundwater resources management. The third category is groundwater numerical modeling, which is a very useful tool to evaluate and project groundwater resources in future. Groundwater numerical modeling also depends upon the point-based groundwater monitoring, so more research to improve point-based detection methods using latest technologies is required, as these still play the baseline role. GRACE and numerical groundwater modeling are suggested to be used conjunctively to assess the groundwater resources more efficiently.

Climate change is one of the biggest challenges of our times, even before the onset of the Coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic. One of the main contributors to climate change is greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions, which are mostly caused by human activities such as the burning of fossil fuels. As the lockdown due to the pandemic has minimised human activity in major cities, GHG emissions have been reduced. This, in turn, is expected to lead to a reduction in the urban heat island (UHI) effect in the cities. The aim of this paper is to understand the relationship between human activity and the UHI intensity and to provide recommendations towards developing a sustainable approach to minimise the UHI effect and improve urban resilience. In this study, historical records of the monthly mean of daily maximum surface air temperatures collected from official weather stations in Melbourne, New York City, Tokyo, Dublin, and Oslo were used to estimate the UHI intensity in these cities. The results showed that factors such as global climate and geographic features could dominate the overall temperature. However, a direct relationship between COVID-19 lockdown timelines and the UHI intensity was observed, which suggests that a reduction in human activity can diminish the UHI intensity. As lockdowns due to COVID-19 are only temporary events, this study also provides recommendations to urban planners towards long-term measures to mitigate the UHI effect, which can be implemented when human activity returns to normal.

Sediment and nutrient pollution in water bodies is threatening human health and the ecosystem, due to rapid land use changes and improper agricultural practices. The impact of the nonpoint source pollution needs to be evaluated for the sustainable use of water resources. An ideal tool like the soil and water assessment tool (SWAT) can assess the impact of pollutant loads on the drainage area, which could be beneficial for developing a water quality management model. This study aims to evaluate the SWAT model’s multi-objective and multivariable calibration, validation, and uncertainty analysis at three different sites of the Yarra River drainage area in Victoria, Australia. The drainage area is split into 51 subdrainage areas in the SWAT model. The model is calibrated and validated for streamflow from 1990 to 2008 and sediment and nutrients from 1998 to 2008. The results show that most of the monthly and annual calibration and validation for streamflow, nutrients, and sediment at the three selected sites are found with Nash–Sutcliffe efficiency values greater than 0.50. Furthermore, the uncertainty analysis of the model shows satisfactory results where the p-factor value is reliable by considering 95% prediction uncertainty and the d-factor value is close to zero. The model's results indicate that the model performs well in the river's watershed, which helps construct a water quality management model. Finally, the model application in the cost-effective management of water quality might reduce pollution in water bodies due to land use and agricultural activities, which would be beneficial to water management managers.

Pollution of a watershed by different land uses and agricultural practices is becoming a major challenging factor that results in deterioration of water quality affecting human health and ecosystems. Sustainable use of available water resources warrants reduction of Non-Point Source (NPS) pollutants from receiving water bodies through best management practices (BMPs). A hydrologic model such as the Soil and Water Assessment Tool (SWAT) can be used for analyzing the impacts of various BMPs and implementing of different management plans for water quality improvement, which will help decision makers to determine the best combination of BMPs to maximize benefits. The objective of this study is to assess the potential reductions of sediments and nutrient loads by utilizing different BMPs on the Yarra River watershed using the SWAT model. The watershed is subdivided into 51 sub-watersheds where seven different BMPs were implemented. A SWAT model was developed and calibrated against a baseline period of 1998–2008. For calibration and validation of the model simulations for both the monthly and annual nutrients and sediments were assessed by using the Nash–Sutcliffe efficiency (NSE) statistical index. The values of the NSE were found more than 0.50 which indicates satisfactory model predictions. By utilizing different BMPs, the highest pollution reduction with minimal costs can be done by 32% targeted mixed-crop area. Furthermore, the combined effect of five BMPs imparts most sediments and nutrient reductions in the watershed. Overall, the selection of a BMP or combinations of BMPs should be set based on the goals set in a BMP application project.

Despite implementing adaptation strategies and measures to make cities sustainable and resilient, the urban heat island (UHI) has been increasing risks to human health and the urban environment by causing hot spots in city areas. This study investigates the spatial patterns in the surface urban heat island (SUHI) over the study site and develops its relationships to socioeconomic, demographic, and buildings’ characteristics. This paper examines the role of building roof types, building roof material, building height, building age, and socioeconomic and demographic factors in driving the SUHI in a city. Numerous studies have focused primarily on the influence of biophysical and meteorological factors on variations in land surface temperatures (LSTs); however, very little attention has been paid to examining the influence of socioeconomic, demographic, and building factors on SUHIs within a city. The analysis has been carried out by processing Landsat based LST data to UHI in the Google Earth Engine (GEE) cloud-based platform. The satellite-based research is further integrated with GIS data acquired from the state government and local city council. Linear regression and multiple regression correlations are further run to examine selected factors’ variance on SUHI. Results indicate socioeconomic, demographic, and building factors contribute significantly to SUHI generation; these factors collectively can explain 28% of the variance in SUHI patterns with significant p-values.