The Cooling Effect of Large-Scale Urban Parks on Surrounding Area Thermal Comfort

Farshid Aram, Ebrahim Solgi, Ester Higueras García, Amir Mosavi and Annamária R. Várkonyi-Kóczy
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Farshid Aram: Escuela Técnica Superior de Arquitectura, Universidad Politécnica de Madrid-UPM, 28040 Madrid, Spain
Ebrahim Solgi: School of Engineering and Built Environment, Griffith University, Gold Coast 4222, Australia
Ester Higueras García: Escuela Técnica Superior de Arquitectura, Universidad Politécnica de Madrid-UPM, 28040 Madrid, Spain
Amir Mosavi: Institute of Automation, Kalman Kando Faculty of Electrical Engineering, Obuda University, 1034 Budapest, Hungary
Annamária R. Várkonyi-Kóczy: Institute of Automation, Kalman Kando Faculty of Electrical Engineering, Obuda University, 1034 Budapest, Hungary

Energies, 2019, vol. 12, issue 20, 1-21

Abstract: This empirical study investigates large urban park cooling effects on the thermal comfort of occupants in the vicinity of the main central park, located in Madrid, Spain. Data were gathered during hot summer days, using mobile observations and a questionnaire. The results showed that the cooling effect of this urban park of 125 ha area at a distance of 150 m could reduce air temperatures by an average of 0.63 °C and 1.28 °C for distances of 380 m and 665 meters from the park. Moreover, the degree of the physiological equivalent temperature (PET) index at a distance of 150 meters from the park is on average 2 °C PET and 2.3 °C PET less compared to distances of 380 m and 665 m, respectively. Considering the distance from the park, the correlation between occupant perceived thermal comfort (PTC) and PET is inverse. That is, augmenting the distance from the park increases PET, while the extent of PTC reduces accordingly. The correlation between these two factors at the nearest and furthest distances from the park is meaningful ( p -value < 0.05). The results also showed that large-scale urban parks generally play a significant part in creating a cognitive state of high-perceived thermal comfort spaces for residents.

Keywords: cooling effect; urban park; thermal comfort; physiological equivalent temperature; perceived thermal comfort; urban heat island; air temperature; sustainable cities; smart cities; urban health; global warming; urban green spaces; sustainable urban development; climate change mitigation and adaptation; urban resilience (search for similar items in EconPapers)
JEL-codes: Q Q0 Q4 Q40 Q41 Q42 Q43 Q47 Q48 Q49 (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2019
References: View references in EconPapers View complete reference list from CitEc
Citations: View citations in EconPapers (8)

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