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The Urban Heat Island phenomenon (UHI), characterized by elevated temperatures in urban areas compared to their rural surroundings, is highly exacerbated by urbanization and climate change. Understanding the complex relationship between UHI effect and urban form is crucial for effective urban planning and climate mitigation strategies. This paper examines the multifaceted connection between UHIs and urban forms, exploring various methods used to study this relationship. Through a review of the existing literature, we analyze the influence of various urban characteristics on the intensity and spatial distribution of UHIs. Furthermore, we discuss the key methods and technologies, such as remote sensing and modeling, used in advancing our understanding of UHI–urban form interactions. This study then delves into the literature on UHIs within the specific context of Morocco, identifying research gaps and emphasizing the need for more comprehensive research to address them. By translating study findings into actionable urban solutions, this paper suggests contextual mitigation strategies based on the research outcomes. Finally, by synthesizing current research findings and methodologies, this paper seeks to provide insights into the complexities of UHI dynamics and their implications for climate resilience, highlighting the potential of research for forging sustainable and climate-conscious planning strategies in Morocco and across the broader MENA region. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Appropriately designed and implemented climate mitigation actions have multiple co-benefits (yet some trade-offs cannot be excluded) that result in substantial social and economic value beyond their direct impact on reducing energy consumption and GHG emissions. Despite their wider acknowledgement by the research community, decision makers and the public have incomplete information on these multiple effects. This paper has a twofold objective: First, through analytical bottom-up approaches, it assesses, in quantitative terms, the macroeconomic effects and the public health benefits attributed to a variety of mitigation actions under consideration in the context of the Greek Energy and Climate Plan. Second, it investigates, through a social survey, how citizens perceive climate change and value these multiple impacts of mitigation actions, and to what extent they are willing to pay for them and support the adoption of policy measures aiming at the green transition of the Greek economy. We show that mitigation actions bring about significant health benefits, particularly in cities, and generate significant positive macroeconomic effects, particularly if mitigation actions focus on the decarbonization of the building sector and on the exploitation of local renewable sources. We also argue that most people do not realize that climate mitigation actions can have wider benefits for society, such as tackling energy poverty, improving public health, and creating new jobs. Unwillingness to pay tends to be the prominent attitude. People who are more reluctant to cover a part of the cost of environmental protection are less likely to perceive that climate change is one of the main challenges at global and national level and support the adoption of climate mitigation policies. In this context, the national strategy for climate change should focus on effectively informing and engaging the public in climate mitigation strategies, strengthening the public trust in government institutions, promoting mutually acceptable solutions with the local communities, and providing incentives for changing citizens' behavior towards climate-related actions. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Wildfires are becoming more frequent due to the global climate change. Large amounts of greenhouse gases emitted by wildfires can lead to increases in extreme climate events. Accurately estimating the greenhouse gas carbon dioxide (CO2) emissions from wildfires is important for mitigation of climate change. In this paper, we develop a novel method to estimate wildfire CO2 emissions from the relationship between local CO2 emissions and XCO2 anomalies. Our method uses the WRF-Chem assimilation system from OCO-2 XCO2 retrievals which coupled with Data Assimilation Research Testbed (DART). To validate our results, we conducted three experiments evaluating the wildfire CO2 emissions over the conterminous United States. The four-month average wildfire emissions from July to October in 2015∼2018 were estimated at 4.408 Tg C, 1.784 Tg C, 1.514 Tg C and 2.873 Tg C, respectively. Compared to the average of established inventories CT2019B, FINNv1.5 and GFASv1.2 fire emissions, our estimates fall within one standard deviation, except for 2017 due to lacking of OCO-2 XCO2 retrievals. These results suggest that the regional carbon assimilation system, such as WRF-Chem/DART, using OCO-2 XCO2 retrievals has a great potential for accurately tracking regional wildfire emissions. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The paper firstly econometrically estimates crop yield impacts and, in turn, the value of releasing ODCV information on crop yields with eight joint ODCV phase combinations. Moreover, the paper divides the crop yield into two types: short-term meteorological yield fluctuation and crop longer term management-induced crop yield. In the second paper, Zhao et al. [[3]] estimate the impact of climate change on crop yield focusing on spring maize in Jilin Province, China, which is the Chinese "golden corn belt". Agriculture is highly vulnerable to climate change-induced shifts in means, variability and extremes. [Extracted from the article]

This paper aims to analyse the issue of mitigation and the balance of greenhouse gases in the rural contexts of the Emilia–Romagna region (Italy) due to climate change. The approach is based on the experimentation of a methodology, populated by available spatial databases and refined with a series of technical meetings, where it was possible to weigh availability and alternative choices within the identified assessment model. The objective of the research is to create a regional GHG balance map, in order to classify the territory for this specific dynamic. The aim of this approach is supporting policy decisions related to the Common Agricultural Policy at a regional level. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The paper utilized a panel dataset to investigate the effects of the impact factors, namely, economic growth, energy intensity, energy consumption, urbanisation, passenger vehicles and transport infrastructure investments on carbon emissions (CO2-eq). The transport sector of the main buoyant economic provinces of South Africa for a consecutive period of five years was investigated using STIRPAT models. Carbon emissions coefficient method, (CECM) is made applicable to determine the quantification of the forms of fossil fuels utilized in the transportation sector. The characterized parametric panel dataset for Gauteng, KwaZulu-Natal and Western Cape were assessed from 2016 to 2020 to make objective function determinations. The results indicate that GDP and passenger vehicles contributed largely to CO2-eq emissions, however, the impact varies across the three provinces. Energy intensity and the approach to energy consumption are significant in mitigating carbon emissions, which is due to the possibilities of high fuel efficiency and pollution decrease. The outcome of the research advances climate change mitigation strategy and proffers the required attention to policy makers in South Africa and Africa as a continent. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Decision makers (DMs) who are involved in urban planning are often required to allocate finite resources (say, money) to improve outdoor thermal comfort (OTC) levels in a region (e.g., city, canton, country). In this paper, for the first time, we address the following two questions, which are directly related to this requirement: (1) How can the statistical properties of the spatial risk profile of an urban area from an OTC perspective be quantified, no matter which OTC index the DM chooses to use? (2) Given the risk profile, how much and where should the DM allocate the finite resources to improve the OTC levels? We answer these fundamental questions by developing a new and rigorous mathematical framework as well as a new class of models for spatial risk models. Our approach is based on methods from machine learning: first, a surrogate model of the OTC index that provides both accuracy and mathematical tractability is developed via regression analysis. Next, we incorporate the imperfect climate model and derive the statistical properties of the OTC index. We present the concept of spatio-temporal aggregate risk (STAR) measures and derive their statistical properties. Finally, building on our derivations, we develop a new algorithm for spatial resource allocation, which is useful for DMs and is based on modern portfolio theory. We implemented the tool and used it to illustrate its operation on a practical case of the large-scale area of Singapore using a WRF climate model. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Nature-based solutions (NbSs) are considered to form an innovative stormwater management approach that has living resolutions grounded in natural processes and structures. NbSs offer many other environmental benefits over traditional grey infrastructure, including reduced air pollution and climate change mitigation. This review predominantly centers on the hydrological aspect of NbSs and furnishes a condensed summary of the collective understanding about NbSs as an alternatives for stormwater management. In this study, which employed the CIMO (Context, Intervention, Mechanism, Outcome) framework, a corpus of 187 NbS-related publications (2000–2023) extracted from the Web of Science database were used, and we expounded upon the origins, objectives, and significance of NbSs in urban runoff and climate change, and the operational mechanisms of NbSs (including green roofs, permeable pavements, bioretention systems, and constructed wetlands), which are widely used in urban stormwater management, were also discussed. Additionally, the efficacy of NbSs in improving stormwater quality and quantity is discussed in depth in this study. In particular, the critical role of NbSs in reducing nutrients such as TSS, TN, TP, and COD and heavy metal pollutants such as Fe, Cu, Pb, and Zn is emphasized. Finally, the main barriers encountered in the promotion and application of NbSs in different countries and regions, including financial, technological and physical, regulatory, and public awareness, are listed, and future directions for improving and strategizing NbS implementation are proposed. This review gathered knowledge from diverse sources to provide an overview of NbSs, enhancing the comprehension of their mechanisms and applications. It underscores specific areas requiring future research attention. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Southeast Europe is considered one of the most vulnerable regions in the context of climate change, and projected future summer warming is expected to exceed global rates significantly. Despite the importance of this problem, there have been few studies that utilized Coupled Model Intercomparison Project Phase 5 (CMIP5) Global Circulation Models (GCMs) and the multi-model ensemble approach to examine extreme heat events on a regional scale. Additionally, the NEX-GDDP dataset, successfully applied in other parts of the world to assess extreme heat, has not yet been utilized for Southeast Europe. This study aims to fill that gap, presenting the time evolution and spatial distribution of extreme heat events in Southeast Europe for the historical period 1950–2005 and for the expected future climate up to the end of the 21st century based on the NEX-GDDP dataset. In order to leverage the strengths of the multi-model ensemble approach, a set of purpose-tailored indicators, such as the annual number of hot days, the maximum number of consecutive hot days, and hot spell duration at different thresholds, is computed by the daily maximum temperature data from all datasets, produced by NEX-GDDP (21 for the historical period and 42 for the future period). The E-OBS dataset is used as a reference for evaluating the NEX-GDDP's capability to simulate the features of the observed historical extreme heat events. The results show that the multi-model ensemble can satisfactorily capture the occurrence of extreme heat events in the historical period, and therefore it is reasonable to assume that the NEX-GDDP dataset has the potential to reproduce such extremes in the projected future. The study provides clear evidence that the persistence and spatial extent of extreme heat will increase significantly. Some indicators that were not relevant for the historical period due to the high-temperature threshold will become helpful in assessing extreme heat in Southeast Europe in the latter part of the century. Thus, under the RCP8.5 scenario, the area-averaged duration of hot spells at 32 °C and 34 °C will increase from near zero in 1976–2005 to 60 and 45 days, respectively, by the end of the century. The indicators used in the study may be helpful for decision-makers to implement climate change mitigation strategies and actions adequately. The findings are consistent with general tendencies in maximum temperatures considered in our previous works but also with the outcomes of recent studies dedicated to the future climate of the region. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Rapid urbanization has led to drastic land-use/cover changes (LUCCs) and urban heat islands (UHIs), negatively altering the urban climate and air quality. LUCC's significant impacts on human health and energy consumption have inspired researchers to develop nature-based solutions to mitigate UHIs and improve air quality. However, integrating GIS-CFD modeling for urban heat mitigation towards climate change adaptation was largely neglected for eco-sustainable urban design in rapidly urbanizing areas. In this study, (1) long-term LUCC and meteorological analysis were conducted in the Wuhan metropolitan area from 1980 to 2016; (2) to mitigate the adverse effects of LUCC under a speedy development process, the role and relevance of optimizing building morphology and urban block configuration were discussed; (3) and particular design attention in strategy towards climate change adaptation for environmental performance improvement was paid in Wuhan's fast-growing zones. The results show that UHII in 1980 was less severe than in 2016. Air temperature (Ta) increased by 0.4 °C on average per decade in developing areas. This increases the severity of UHII in urban fringes. It is found obligatory for a nature-based design to adopt urban morphology indicators (UMIs) such as average building height (μBH), sky view factors (ψSVF), and building density (BD/λp = % of built area) towards these changes. Further, on-site measurement revealed that λp is the most effective indicator for increasing urban heat around the buildings and boosting UHII. Using UMIs and a combined three-in-one regulation strategy based on μBH of common building types of high-rise (BHA), mid-rise (BHB), and low-rise (BHC) buildings can effectively contribute to regulating Ta and air movement within block configuration. As a result of this study's strategy, urban heat is mitigated via reinforcing wind in order to adapt to climate change, which impacts the quality of life directly in developing areas. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The use of recycled materials as soil amendments and fertilizers is an important priority in the agronomic sector to valorize waste from a circular economic perspective and reduce waste disposal, reduce dependence on external inputs, and provide better climate change mitigation options. In this study, we evaluated the agroecological performance of compost derived from recycled organic matrices of urban waste (mixed composted amendment, MCA) of the metropolitan area of Rome. MCA is available in big quantities and might represent an interesting option to substitute conventional mineral nitrogen fertilizer (CF). The effect of MCA, CF, and a combination of both (MIX 1:1) was tested on crop yield and greenhouse gas emissions in a field trial on a common Mediterranean crop (Swiss chart, one season, two crop cycles). The MCA effect on crop yield was positive and comparable to CF and MIX treatments, while MCA treatment showed the lower soil mineral nitrogen (N) content. GHG emissions in the MCA treatment were comparable to those observed in CF and MIX, being overall quite low. The soil acted as a weak net CH4 sink in all treatments (−12.6 ± 6.1 μg CH4 m−2 h−1); no differences in CO2 emissions between MCA and CF or MIX treatments were observed (range 0.1−0.2 g m−2 h−1). The N2O emission intensity of MCA was slightly lower than MIX and CF treatments (0.09, 0.011, and 0.011 g N2O kg−1 crop dry weight, respectively). Overall, MCA seemed a valid alternative to CF for the tested agro-environmental indicators in the spring/summer Mediterranean conditions. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The way Norway is spearheading electrification in the transport sector is of global interest. In this study, we used the Norwegian Emissions from Road Vehicle Exhaust (NERVE) model, a bottom-up high-resolution traffic emission model, to calculate all emissions in Norway (2009–2020) and evaluate potential co-benefit and trade-offs of policies to target climate change mitigation, air quality and socioeconomic factors. Results for municipal data with regard to traffic growth, road network influences, vehicle composition, emissions and energy consumption are presented. Light vehicle CO 2 emissions per kilometer have been reduced by 22% since 2009, mainly driven by an increasing bio-fuel mixing and battery electric vehicles (BEV) share. BEVs are mostly located in and around the main cities, areas with young vehicle fleets, and strong local incentives. Beneficiaries of BEVs incentives have been a subset of the population with strong economic indicators. The incentivized growth in the share of diesel-fuelled passenger vehicles has been turned, and together with Euro6 emission standards, light vehicle NOx emissions have been halved since peaking in 2014. BEVs represent an investment in emission reductions in years to come, and current sales set Norway up for an accelerated decline in all exhaust emissions despite the continual growth in traffic. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Urban residential carbon dioxide (CO2) emissions have increased sharply along with the rapid urbanization process. Few studies have considered the different effects of influencing factors between Northern and Southern China, and the analysis of CO2 per unit area from the spatial perspective is also rarely involved. Using the spatial Durbin model (SDM), this study aimed at revealing the influencing factors (including income, inequality, population density, urban morphology, etc.) on CO2 per capita and CO2 per unit area during 2001–2018 between Northern and Southern China. The results showed that the Northern cities had higher carbon emissions and a faster growth rate, and the high-high clusters were also mainly located in the Northern cities. The Gini coefficient was correlated adversely with CO2, while income imposed a positive effect on carbon emissions. The negative coefficients of the quadratic term of the GDP per capita demonstrated that the residential carbon emissions have the potential to decrease when the income increases to a certain level. The indirect effects of income and the Gini showed that spatial spillover effects exist. Urban population density and the ratio of residential area to built-up area had an opposite effect on CO2 per capita and CO2 per unit area, and they have a bigger impact on the CO2 per unit area. This study revealed the different roles of various factors in reducing CO2 per unit area from the spatial perspective and CO2 per capita from the non-spatial perspective between the Northern and Southern regions, which could help policymakers to design targeted mitigation measures in the residential sector in China, providing references for developing countries to jointly reduce carbon emissions to promote the mitigation of global climate change. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Land use and land cover change (LULCC) alters the character of the land surface and directly impacts the climate. The impacts of LULCC on historical and future climate have been largely investigated, mostly using simulations with or without land use change. However, it is still not clear to what extent the projections of future climate change depend on the choice of land use scenario, which can provide important guidance on using land use and land management as a tool for regional climate mitigation. Here, using ten Earth system models participating in future land use policy sensitivity experiments in Land Use Model Intercomparison Project (LUMIP), we assessed the impact of two different land use scenarios (SSP1-2.6 and SSP3-7.0) on extreme climate. The results demonstrate that the use of different land use change scenarios has a substantial effect on the projections of regional climate extreme changes. Our study also reveals that, compared with other anthropogenic forcings, land use change has a considerable contribution to regional temperature extreme changes, with the contribution ranging from −14.0% to 10.3%, and the contribution to regional precipitation extreme change is larger, with a range of −118.4~138.8%. The global climate effects of land use change are smaller in magnitude than regional effects, with a small (5%) contribution to temperature extreme change. We also found a large spread in the model's responses to LULCC, especially for precipitation extremes, suggesting that observation-based studies on reducing models' uncertainties are needed to obtain more robust future projections of regional climate change. Our study highlights the essential role of land use and land management strategies in future regional climate mitigation. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Considering the linkages between climate change and water management, a lack of effort has been observed in analyzing the imprints of climate change over the transboundary Teesta river basin, where the changing climatic conditions can trigger substantial changes in eco-hydrological and socio-politico-economic setups. Therefore, to stimulate effective basin management, we investigated the trends in temperature, precipitation, potential evapotranspiration, and water availability under 1.5 and 2 °C warming levels across the transboundary Teesta river basin. The ensemble median of five bias-corrected model outputs from the Coupled Model Intercomparison Project Phase 6 (CMIP6) was used for this purpose. The results indicate that the temperature is expected to significantly increase (decrease) in the near (far) future, along with an overall significant increasing trend in monsoon precipitation. The evaporation paradox is found in the near future, and the water availability is likely to increase, with some exceptions for the pre-monsoon season. The perpetuation of such changes might result in environmental degradation through snow melting, glacial recession, and floods. Anticipating the changing climatic scenarios and their possible impacts, in this study, we recommend a variety of short- and long-term strategies for the concerned stakeholders to implement the Sustainable Development Goal 13, i.e., "Climate Action", over the Teesta river basin. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

One of the most critical greenhouse gases in the atmosphere is carbon dioxide (CO2) due to its long-lasting and negative impact on climate change. The global atmospheric monthly mean CO2 concentration is currently greater than 410 ppm which has changed dramatically since the industrial era. To choose suitable climate change mitigation and adaptation strategies it is necessary to define carbon dioxide mass distribution and global atmospheric carbon dioxide mass. The available method to estimate the global atmospheric CO2 mass was proposed in 1980. In this study, to increase the accuracy of the available method, various observation platforms such as ground-based stations, ground-based tall towers, aircrafts, balloons, ships, and satellites are compared to define the best available observations, considering the temporal and spatial resolution. In the method proposed in this study, satellite observations (OCO2 data), from January 2019 to December 2021, are used to estimate atmospheric CO2 mass. The global atmospheric CO2 mass is estimated around 3.24 × 1015 kg in 2021. For the sake of comparison, global atmospheric CO2 mass was estimated by Fraser's method using NOAA data for the mentioned study period. The proposed methodology in this study estimated slightly greater amounts of CO2 in comparison to Fraser's method. This comparison resulted in 1.23% and 0.15% maximum and average difference, respectively, between the proposed method and Fraser's method. The proposed method can be used to estimate the required capacity of systems for carbon capturing and can be applied to smaller districts to find the most critical locations in the world to plan for climate change mitigation and adaptation. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The contribution of litterfall (dead leaves, twigs, etc., fallen to the ground) and forest floor (organic residues such as leaves, twigs, etc., in various stages of decomposition, on the top of the mineral soil) is fundamental in both forest ecosystem sustainability and soil greenhouse gases (GHG) exchange system with the atmosphere. The effect of different thinning treatments (control-no thinning, traditional-low thinning, selective-intense thinning) on litterfall and forest floor nutrients, in relation to soil GHG fluxes, is analyzed. After one year of operations, thinning had a significant seasonal effect on both litterfall and forest floor, and on their nutrient concentrations. The intense (selective) thinning significantly affected the total litterfall production and conifer fractions, reducing them by 46% and 48%, respectively, compared with the control (no thinning) sites. In the forest floor, thinning was able to significantly increase the Fe concentration intraditional thinning by 59%, and Zn concentration in the intense thinning by 55% (compared with control). Overall, litterfall acted as a bio-filter of the gasses emitting from the forest floor, acting as a GHG regulator. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Since agriculture directly contributes to global anthropogenic greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions, integrating trees into agricultural landscapes through agroforestry systems is a viable adaptive strategy for climate change mitigation. The objective of this study was to evaluate the carbon (C) sequestration and financial benefits of C sequestration according to Quebec's Cap-and-Trade System for Greenhouse Gas Emissions Allowances (C & T System) or the Système de plafonnement et d'échange de droits d'émission de gaz à effet de serre du Québec (SPEDE) program for two experimental 10-year-old tree-based intercropping (TBI) systems in southern Quebec, Canada. We estimated total C stored in the two TBI systems with hybrid poplar and hardwoods and adjacent non-TBI systems under agricultural production, considering soil, crop and crop roots, litterfall, tree and tree roots as C stocks. The C sequestration of the TBI and adjacent non-TBI systems were compared and the market value of the C payment was evaluated using the net present value (NPV) approach. The TBI systems had 33% to 36% more C storage than adjacent non-TBI systems. The financial benefits of C sequestration after 10 years of TBI practices amounted to of $2,259-$2,758 CAD ha 1 and $1,568-$1,913 CAD ha 1 for St. Edouard and St. Paulin sites, respectively. We conclude that valorizing the C sequestration of TBI systems could be an incentive to promote the establishment of TBI for the purpose of GHG mitigation in Quebec, Canada. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This study attempts to investigate the effects of global climate change (via temperature and rainfall) on cereal production in Sichuan over the 1978–2018 period, whether agricultural credit combining with technical progress (i.e., mechanical farming rate) mitigate the effect of climate change. The present study empirically analyzed the short-term and long-term interrelation among all the considered variables by using the autoregressive distributed lag (ARDL) model. The results of the ARDL bounds testing revealed that there is a long-term cointegration relationship between the variables. The findings showed that temperature significantly negatively affected cereal production, while rainfall significantly contributed to cereal production in the context of Sichuan province, China. Agricultural credit, especially in the long run, significantly improved cereal production, implying that agricultural credit is used to invest in climate mitigation technologies in cereal production. Findings further indicated that the mechanical farming rate significantly enhanced cereal production, indicating that technical progress has been playing a vital role. This study suggests that the policymakers should formulate more comprehensive agricultural policies to meet the financial needs of the agricultural sector and increase support for production technology. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

While climate change has global causations and impacts, there is growing consensus on addressing the 2 °C challenge through local actions. However, at the local level, there is disintegrated knowledge on the following: (a) short-, mid- and long-term climate vulnerability, (b) economy and GHG structures and their future pathways, and (c) useful mitigation and adaptation undertaken elsewhere. We evaluate these gaps through a comprehensive review of scientific literature and policy approaches of urban-climate studies in the Asia-Pacific Region. Based on the research findings, we develop a collaborative research framework of an integrated climate action planning (ICLAP) model for evidence-based decision-making tool. It adopts an innovative methodology integrating knowledge and data from diverse analytics, as follows: (a) spatial: downscaling global/regional climate scenarios to forecast local climate variability (50 km × 50 km) for 2030 (SDG target) and 2050; (b) statistical: a meta-analysis of 49 five-million-plus cities to forecast economic, energy and GHG scenarios; (c) bibliometric: a systematic review of global urban climate interventions from Google Scholar that collectively aid cities on policy inputs for mid-term climate variability, GHG profiles and available solutions at their disposal. We conclude with a discussion on scientific and policy relevance of such a tool in fostering overall urban, regional and global sustainability. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Green infrastructure is well recognized as a key urban climate mitigation strategy. In line with this, and following a central government decree, Jakarta Municipal Government has created a green infrastructure target of 30% underpinned by a green space weighting factor. This study questions the efficacy of such a "universal" target setting from the point of view of outdoor thermal comfort and demonstrates the basis for an alternative approach. Based on a "new' green factor developed from a systematic analysis of the literature, thermal comfort simulations of representative local climate zones (LCZ) show that improvements in current green space policy are possible. We enumerate a rational basis for specifying green space targets per local area based on contextual realities as captured by the LCZ approach. Such a nuanced approach to mitigate the human comfort consequences of inadvertent urban growth is not only more contextually appropriate but also enhances the feasibility of achieving the intended goal of urban greening in Jakarta. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Globally, the climate is changing, and this has implications for livestock. Climate affects livestock growth rates, milk and egg production, reproductive performance, morbidity, and mortality, along with feed supply. Simultaneously, livestock is a climate change driver, generating 14.5% of total anthropogenic Greenhouse Gas (GHG) emissions. Herein, we review the literature addressing climate change and livestock, covering impacts, emissions, adaptation possibilities, and mitigation strategies. While the existing literature principally focuses on ruminants, we extended the scope to include non-ruminants. We found that livestock are affected by climate change and do enhance climate change through emissions but that there are adaptation and mitigation actions that can limit the effects of climate change. We also suggest some research directions and especially find the need for work in developing country settings. In the context of climate change, adaptation measures are pivotal to sustaining the growing demand for livestock products, but often their relevance depends on local conditions. Furthermore, mitigation is key to limiting the future extent of climate change and there are a number of possible strategies. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Air pollution and climate change are closely interlinked, once both share common emission sources, which mainly arise from fuel combustion and industrial processes. Climate mitigation actions bring co-benefits on air quality and human health. However, specific solutions can provide negative trade-offs for one side. The Portuguese Carbon Neutrality Roadmap was developed to assess conceivable cost-effective pathways to achieve zero net carbon emissions by 2050. Assessing its impacts, on air pollutant emissions, is the main focus of the present work. The bottom-up linear optimization energy system the integrated MARKAL-EFOM system (TIMES) model was selected as a modeling tool for the decarbonization scenarios assessment. The estimation of air pollutant emissions was performed exogenously to the TIMES model. Results show that reaching net zero greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions is possible, and technologically feasible, in Portugal, by 2050. The crucial and most cost-effective vector for decarbonizing the national economy is the end-use energy consumption electrification, renewable based, across all end-use sectors. Decarbonization efforts were found to have strong co-benefits for reducing air pollutant emissions in Portugal. Transport and power generation are the sectors with the greatest potential to reduce GHG emissions, providing likewise the most significant reductions of air pollutant emissions. Despite the overall positive effects, there are antagonistic effects, such as the use of biomass, mainly in industry and residential sectors, which translates into increases in particulate matter emissions. This is relevant for medium term projections, since results show that, by 2030, PM2.5 emissions are unlikely to meet the emission reduction commitments set at the European level, if no additional control measures are considered. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The next generation of climate services needs not only tailoring to specific user needs but to provide, in addition, access to key information in a usable way that satisfies the needs of different users' profiles; especially web-based services. Here, we present the outcomes from developing such a new interactive prototype. The service provides data for robust climate analysis to underpin decision-making when planning measures to compensate for climate impact. The goal is to facilitate the communication on climate information between climate modelling communities and adaptation or mitigation initiatives from vulnerable countries that are applying for funds from the Green Climate Fund (GCF). A participatory process was ensured during four workshops in four pilot countries, with an audience of national and international experts. During this process it was made clear that in all countries there is a strong need for knowledge in climate science, while in most countries there was also an increasing need of capacity in hydrological modelling and water management. The active interaction during the workshops was found necessary to facilitate the dialogue between service developers and users. Understanding the users, transparency on potentials and limitations of climate services together with capacity development in climate science and methods were required components in the development of the service. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

As cities and their population are subjected to climate change and urban heat islands, it is paramount to have the means to understand the local urban climate and propose mitigation measures, especially at neighbourhood, local and building scales. A framework is presented, where the urban climate is studied by coupling a meteorological model to a building-resolved local urban climate model, and where an urban climate model is coupled to a building energy simulation model. The urban climate model allows for studies at local scale, combining modelling of wind and buoyancy with computational fluid dynamics, radiative exchange and heat and mass transport in porous materials including evaporative cooling at street canyon and neighbourhood scale. This coupled model takes into account the hygrothermal behaviour of porous materials and vegetation subjected to variations of wetting, sun, wind, humidity and temperature. The model is driven by climate predictions from a mesoscale meteorological model including urban parametrisation. Building energy demand, such as cooling demand during heat waves, can be evaluated. This integrated approach not only allows for the design of adapted buildings, but also urban environments that can mitigate the negative effects of future climate change and increased urban heat islands. Mitigation solutions for urban heat island effect and heat waves, including vegetation, evaporative cooling pavements and neighbourhood morphology, are assessed in terms of pedestrian comfort and building (cooling) energy consumption. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The projection of future precipitation over the Yellow River Basin (YRB) is of great importance to regional climate change adaptation and mitigation. Using the historical simulations and projections under the four combined scenarios of the shared socioeconomic pathways and the forcing levels of the Representative Concentration Pathways (SSP1-2.6, SSP2-4.5, SSP3-7.0 and SSP5-8.5) provided by the multimodel ensemble mean of 10 models in phase six of the Coupled Model Intercomparison Project (CMIP6), the projected spatial and temporal changes of future summer precipitation over the YRB and the possible physical mechanisms underlying future summer precipitation changes are investigated. Large discrepancies in precipitation exist among the four scenarios during the latter half period of the 21st century, with precipitation under SSP5-8.5 being the largest. Nevertheless, the precipitation under each of the four scenarios shows a similar spatial pattern over the YRB, with an east–west-oriented gradient. A comparison of projected moisture transport into the YRB among the four scenarios reveals two channels (westerlies and monsoon flow) under SSP5-8.5, whereas the monsoon flow from adjacent oceans is important under the other three scenarios. Further analysis of the unique features of the projected moisture flux and substantial increase in summer precipitation under SSP5-8.5 indicates that the future summer precipitation trend over the YRB can be mainly attributed to an increase in evaporation and moisture advection. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Brazil, one of the world's fastest-growing economies, is the fifth most populous country and is experiencing accelerated urbanization. This combination of factors causes an increase in urban population that is exposed to poor air quality, leading to public health burdens. In this work, the Weather Research and Forecasting Model with Chemistry is applied to simulate air quality over Brazil for a short time period under three future emission scenarios, including current legislation (CLE), mitigation scenario (MIT), and maximum feasible reduction (MFR) under the Representative Concentration Pathway 4.5 (RCP4.5), which is a climate change scenario under which radiative forcing of greenhouse gases (GHGs) reach 4.5 W m−2 by 2100. The main objective of this study is to determine the sensitivity of the concentrations of ozone (O3) and particulate matter with aerodynamic diameter 2.5 µm or less (PM2.5) to changes in emissions under these emission scenarios and to determine the signal and spatial patterns of these changes for Brazil. The model is evaluated with observations and shows reasonably good agreement. The MFR scenario leads to a reduction of 3% and 75% for O3 and PM2.5 respectively, considering the average of grid cells within Brazil, whereas the CLE scenario leads to an increase of 1% and 11% for O3 and PM2.5 respectively, concentrated near urban centers. These results indicate that of the three emission control scenarios, the CLE leads to poor air quality, while the MFR scenario leads to the maximum improvement in air quality. To the best of our knowledge, this work is the first to investigate the responses of air quality to changes in emissions under these emission scenarios for Brazil. The results shed light on the linkage between changes of emissions and air quality. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Mediterranean ecosystems are threatened by water and nutrient scarcity and continuous loss of soil organic carbon. Urban agglomerations and rural ecosystems in the Mediterranean region and globally are interlinked through the flows of resources/nutrients and wastes. Contributing to balancing these cycles, the present study advocates standardized biochar as a soil amendment, produced from Mediterranean suitable biowaste, for closing the nutrient loop in agriculture, with parallel greenhouse gas reduction, enhancing air quality in urban agglomerations, mitigating climate change. The study's scope is the contextualization of pyrolytic conditions and biowaste type effects on the yield and properties of biochar and to shed light on biochar's role in soil fertility and climate change mitigation. Mediterranean-type suitable feedstocks (biowaste) to produce biochar, in accordance with biomass feedstocks approved for use in producing biochar by the European Biochar Certificate, are screened. Data form large-scale and long-period field experiments are considered. The findings advocate the following: (a) pyrolytic biochar application in soils contributes to the retention of important nutrients for agricultural production, thereby reducing the use of fertilizers; (b) pyrolysis does not release carbon dioxide to the atmosphere, contributing positively to the balance of carbon dioxide emissions to the atmosphere, with carbon uptake by plant photosynthesis; (c) biochar stores carbon in soils, counterbalancing the effect of climate change by sequestering carbon; (d) there is an imperative need to identify the suitable feedstock for the production of sustainable and safe biochar from a range of biowaste, according to the European Biochar Certificate, for safe crop production. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Climate change could be seen as a 21st century phenomenon. This topic has been taken up equally by professionals as well as the general public. Adaptation and mitigation actions are needed, especially in cities where the concentration of population and an increased demand for resources (e.g., water, food, land) are expected in the coming years. Already, 400 cities have been declared to be in a "climate emergency" state. There are no longer any doubts that current environmental state requires actions and solutions for both the alarming climate situation and urban quality life development. If such action is not going to be taken, the environmental state will deteriorate. One possible solution could be the use of green infrastructure. This research compares approaches to green areas and green infrastructure development in Bratislava (Slovakia) and Wrocław (Poland). A comparison was made for projects realized between 2013 and 2018—i.e., since the publication of the European Union (EU) Strategy on Adaptation to Climate Change in 2013. The research presents an overview of delivered projects regarding land use. The overview, which is supported by a density map of implemented green projects, verifies whether the new greenery fits and fills in the existing natural areas. Secondly, the green projects were analyzed according to years and land use types using Tableau software. Moreover, the legislation of climate adaptation mechanisms and practical aspects of green infrastructure implementation are shown. Finally, actions concerning the greening of the cities were categorized into practical, educational, and participatory ones, and the potential of green infrastructure as a positive landscape, micro-climate, health, and aesthetic influence was examined. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Projected increase in frequency and severity of extreme events are important threat brought by climate change. Thus, there is a need to understand the dynamics and magnitude of climate extreme at local and regional level. This study examines the patterns of annual trends and changes of extreme daily temperature and precipitation in Myanmar for the period of 1981 to 2015 using the RClimDex 1.1 software. The trends of maximum and minimum temperature show significant warming trends (p < 0.001) across Myanmar. From 2009 to 2015, the maximum temperature anomaly has continuously increased by 0.5 °C for all years except 2011. The larger rise in both maximum and minimum temperature observed after 2000 suggests that, overall, days and nights are becoming hotter for the entirety of Myanmar over this recent period. Furthermore, our works also show that the temperature extreme indices of warm days and warm nights have increased, whereas the frequency of cool days and cool nights have decreased. Our analysis also reveals that increasing trends in precipitation anomaly were not significant during 1981–2015. On the contrary, slight increasing trends towards wetter conditions were observed with a rate of 76.52 mm/decade during the study period. The other precipitation extreme indicators—namely, annual total precipitation (PRCPTOT), heavy precipitation days (R20mm), extreme wet days precipitation (R99p), and consecutive wet days (CWD)—are consistent with warming trends. Additionally, the relationship between inter-annual variability in the climate extremes indices and Oceanic Niño Index (ONI) patterns was also examined with a focus on the influence of the El Niño-Southern Oscillation (ENSO) phenomenon. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]