Contribution of urban revegetation to urban heat island mitigation

Context and challenges

The urbanisation of surfaces significantly modifies wind flows, as well as convective and radiative exchanges between the surface and the atmosphere. These changes generate modifications in the microclimate, the best known being the urban heat island phenomenon, which reflects higher temperatures in urban areas than on the outskirts of towns. These higher temperatures have numerous environmental (increased heat waves), health (discomfort, heat stress, mortality) and economic (energy consumption, medical care) consequences. In addition, coupled with emissions linked to urban activities (road traffic), they contribute to episodes of atmospheric pollution. The scientific community has identified several mitigation solutions for this phenomenon, including the establishment of vegetation in urban areas. In fact, the latter influences radiative exchanges, heat, air flows and, in addition, has the advantage of representing a sink for many atmospheric pollutants.

Objectives

The thesis aims to understand to what extent the greening of the urban environment (in the form of trees, green roofs and walls, etc.) can help regulate the urban microclimate and improve air quality. The originality of the thesis will be based on factoring ecophysiological processes into the modelling in order to precisely represent the interactions between the urban climate and plant functioning, as well as on the quantification of the role of atmospheric pollutant sinks provided by vegetation.

Read her paper “Coupling the TEB and Surfatm Models for Heat Flux Modelling in Urban Area: Comparison With Flux Measurements in Strasbourg (France)”