Extract

The Urban Heat Island (UHI) has become increasingly important due to the increased vulnerability of urban areas to UHI effects and thermal risk for urban residents. In Australia, extreme heat and overheated outdoor environments adversely affect the well-being of the urban population, energy consumption for cooling, sustainability and liveability of cities. This paper examines microclimate characteristics of three Australian cities, namely, Darwin, Alice Springs, and
Western Sydney using the microclimate model ENVI-met. The simulations involve urban environments both in the existing situation and after application of appropriate mitigation strategies in a representative warm summer day. This evaluation is of importance due to the potential of mitigation strategies to decrease the ambient temperature and provide comfort for residents. This study involved a selection of mitigation strategies (e.g., urban greenery, cool material, water-technologies, solar control, and combinations). Microclimate models were developed to assess the influence of the proposed mitigation strategies to reduce urban heat from these cities. This study found a possibility to decrease the maximum temperature of Darwin City up to approximately 2.5°C. In Alice Springs, the achieved decrease of the maximum ambient temperature is close to 1.2°C. In Western Sydney, a combination of the proposed strategies shows a reduction of 1.4°C.

PDF

Download