Sustainable urban planning of high density cities by urban climatic mapping: An experience from Kaohsiung, Taiwan

Abstract

There is a need to create sustainable urban development and quality living environment for the increasing urban population of high density cities. Sustainable urban planning of high density cities from the urban climatic point of view has been a topical issue for city planners and policy makers. However, the application of urban climatic knowledge has a low impact urban planning and policy decision making of urban development. This is especially true in high density cities of developing countries. Thus, there is an urgent need to seek for ways to assemble quickly urban climatic information for planning actions in a format that is user-friendly to planners. The study has identified ways to promote the use of urban climatic knowledge in planning. By utilizing readily available data, the paper introduces a method that focuses on urban planning using the Urban Climatic Map (UCMap). UCMap provides a visual and spatial information platform on planner-friendly Geographical Information System. By focusing on Kaohsiung, Taiwan, the study first defines the urban climatic issues in the area. It then introduces the key methodology of urban climatic mapping and elaborates on the general urban climatic-based planning advices using the UCMap. Lastly, it identifies the sensitive areas and provides planning recommendations that can be easily adopted by city planners. The actionable importance of urban greenery and coverage, urban air paths and open spaces, water bodies and rivers, and building morphologies and layouts, have been highlighted for planners.