Uploaded on 2016-04-10 by MaximilianPalm

--------------------------- a) New York: average 1.5°C hotter than surrounding rural area in summer b) Miami: on average 0.9 °C hotter than surrounding rural area in summer 2. UHI effects in Barranquilla, Colombia: ----------------------------------------- Temperature: Barranquilla is on average 0.6°C hotter than the small town Puerto Colombia nearby. During daytime, it can get uncomfortably hot in the streets when the sun is shining down from above and the dark pavement radiates back the heat from below. ![Rural area of Barranquilla, Copyright Google Maps][1] *Rural area of Barranquilla, Copyright Google Maps* ![Barranquilla City][2] *Barranquilla City* In the second image, we can see various factors contributing to heat island formation in Barranquilla. 1. Most surfaces are pavement or concrete, which trap the heat from the sun. There are very few green areas. There are parks, but their surface is also mostly covered. 2. Cars contribute to a hot and unfriendly climate. Almost all of them use air conditioning, adding additional heat sources. 3. Most buildings also use air conditioning. 4. Building materials for houses are often light colored, facilitating diffuse reflection of incoming sunlight. 5. Streets are generally ample and offer lots of surface to enter the canopy area. 6. Most buildings are one or two stories tall and have frequent interruptions, making them less of a street canyon. However, there are significantly bigger buildings that reflect more light and form barriers for the wind. 2. Measures to reduce UHI in Barranquilla, Colombia: ---------------------------------------------------- 3. Green streets: Streets should have more trees to reduce the surface heat during the day. While this insulation mechanism might slightly increase canopy heat island effects during nighttime, it would certainly help to create a more comfortable conditions during the day. 4. Green parks: Parks in Barranquilla are blocks of open spaces for leisure time activities like sports, taking walks or just spending time outside. They mostly have a lot more trees than the streets, but most surface areas are still closes pavements or similar materials. Covering these spaces with earth and plants instead of stone would certainly have advantages for the micro climate, but would be costly to maintain. Likewise, extending or adding new parks would be useful, but expensive. 5. Green buildings: If buildings had better insulation, less air conditioning would be needed. Also, using solar energy would greatly reduce the need to burn fossil fuels. Conveniently, air conditioning is used most when the sunlight is most intense. 6. UHI in public policy an Barranquilla, Colombia ------------------------------------------------- There are initiatives in Colombia and also in Barranquilla that see UHIs as problems and attempt to implement solutions (e.g. http://resilient-cities.iclei.org/fileadmin/sites/resilient-cities/files/Resilient_Cities_2014/PPTs/D/D1_Vargas_Meece.pdf). I could not find what measures might be part of these initiatives, though, and I haven't lived in Colombia for long enough to see a general direction. The high temperatures are a major limitation on livability here, but there are more pressing problems like regularly flooded streets, poverty, crime and corruption. Once these are under control, attention will be probably be placed on UHI, especially because it affects health and productivity. [1]: https://edxuploads.s3.amazonaws.com/14603258765205102.jpg [2]: https://edxuploads.s3.amazonaws.com/1460325924754457.jpg