JiSMART2022—017: Effect of Urban Blue-Green Infrastructure on Microclimate: A Critical Review

Abstract

Urban blue-green infrastructure (UBGI), including water and greenery, is an essential part of the urban structure and has a vital environmental implication in alleviating altered thermodynamic properties of urban surfaces, urban heat islands (UHI), and extreme thermal events. Water and greenery differently affect the urban microclimate. This work offers a comprehensive analysis of the literature on microclimate research about the thermal effects of water and greenery to identify the most investigated themes, highlighting understudied regions, synthesizing the available research data, and emphasizing the most significant findings. The study results revealed that the UHI impact received the most attention. Most researchers collect data using field measurements, but others focus on using numerical techniques to analyze the UHI's structure or temporal and geographical change. In the study of microclimate features and material physical qualities of water and greenery, there is a clear knowledge gap, as this paper demonstrates. It is especially crucial to analyze, create, and implement climate adaptation and mitigation strategies for sustainable urban development because of ongoing climate change.