Utilization of Native Landscape in Enhancing Microclimate: The Case of Abu Dhabi Neighborhoods

Abstract

Lack of urban vegetation and limited landscape elements negatively affect the urban microclimate and reduce thermal comfort. Due to Urban Heat Island Effect, temperatures in cities in comparison to their rural surroundings have increased, reducing the number of walking trips and use of public spaces. It is thus necessary to investigate the quality of outdoor built environments in order to improve the quality of life in cites. The main objective is to address the landscape-morphological (soft and hard) aspects of Emirati neighborhoods, to assess and compare landscape characteristics and microclimate performance of existing typologies in Abu Dhabi. Different morphological aspects were considered in selecting the neighborhoods such as block density, street patterns, streets canyon and right of way. The selection of different neighborhood forms assisted us to measure the use of different landscape design strategies to enhance neighborhood microclimate. By using different native plantation types the opportunity of enhancing outdoor urban comfort has increased through utilizing passive cooling effects and shading efficiency. The study mainly focused on neighborhood sidewalks and street canyons to develop strategies that provide shade for pedestrians and promote walkability. This study used ENVI-met, an analytical, three-dimensional, high resolution microclimate modeling software. This micro-scale urban climate module was used to evaluate existing conditions in selected urban blocks and generate scenarios in residential areas, with different native landscaping types, and examine their impact on ambient temperatures during summer and autumn. This study highlighted the importance of native landscaping in hot-arid countries such as the UAE and its positive effect on microclimate. Therefore, the ‘strategic' enhanced spaces along the edge and within the urban block itself should be designed to minimize pedestrian's exposure to weather extremes. The new approaches were tested to bring the environment to an acceptable range of thermal comforts; with an initial reduction of 1 ͦ C to 3 ͦ C.

Date of Award	May 2017
Original language	American English