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Developing a sound urban green infrastructure system is critical for addressing climate change. Green infrastructure (GI) also plays an essential role in the urban system by providing ecosystem services for urban residents. Although some research on GI has been published in Taiwan, there is a lack of understanding of how changes in land use and GI affect the landscape patterns in urban fringe areas. This study explores the impact of changes in GI on the landscape pattern of the urban fringe and urban core areas in the Taipei metropolitan area (TMA). We used intensity analysis to investigate changes in land area and land use intensity between 1981 and 2015 at three levels: interval, category, and transition. Landscape metrics were employed to analyze changes in GI patterns. We found, firstly, that although the rate of change in the urban core area of the TMA was faster than the rate of change in the urban fringe area during 1981–1995 and 1995–2006, changes in the urban fringe area nevertheless maintained a state of rapid change in 1995–2006 and 2006–2015. Secondly, forest and agricultural lands in urban fringe areas were the GI categories with the greatest changes in area from 1981 to 2015. Thirdly, transition areas among forest, agricultural, and built-up areas in urban fringe areas were larger during 1995–2015 than 1981–1995. Finally, the results of landscape pattern analysis indicate that the urban fringe area of the TMA is experiencing landscape fragmentation. Although forest land remained the main category in the urban fringe from 1981 to 2015, the integrity of its patch area decreased over time, and the prevalence of small and complex patches of built-up and agricultural land increased. Spatial planning should therefore consider how to build a GI system to promote ecosystem services in urban fringe areas so as to enhance the ability to respond to climate change. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

A proper water quality monitoring design is required in a watershed, particularly in a water resource protected area. As numerous factors can influence the water quality monitoring design, this study applies multiple criteria analysis to evaluate the suitability of the water quality monitoring design in the Taipei Water Resource Domain (TWRD) in northern Taiwan. Seven criteria, which comprise percentage of farmland area, percentage of built-up area, amount of non-point source pollution, green cover ratio, landslide area ratio, ratio of over-utilization on hillsides, and density of water quality monitoring stations, are selected in the multiple criteria analysis. The criteria are normalized and weighted. The weighted method is applied to score the subbasins. The density of water quality stations needs to be increased in priority in the subbasins with a higher score. The fuzzy theory is utilized to prioritize the need for a higher density of water quality monitoring stations. The results show that the need for more water quality stations in subbasin 2 in the Bei-Shih Creek Basin is much higher than those in the other subbasins. Furthermore, the existing water quality station in subbasin 2 requires maintenance. It is recommended that new water quality stations be built in subbasin 2. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The aim of this study was to evaluate and position the perceptions of importance and performance of municipal solid waste management aspects and criteria. The study results propose dependence relations among four aspects and 33 criteria pertaining to metropolitan Taipei. Evaluation was based on linguistically described preferences and multiple aspects and criteria analysis; in particular, applied fuzzy set theory was used to evaluate linguistic vagueness, and the analytic network process was applied for dependence relations among the aspects and criteria. In order to compile managerial implications and concluding remarks, importance-performance analysis was conducted, using several mathematical techniques applied to the objectives as well as the participation and input of professionals and academicians. Overall results and concluding remarks are discussed. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The data collected from the five air quality monitoring stations established by the Taiwan Environmental Protection Administration (TEPA) in Taipei City were analyzed to assess the changes in air quality. The analyses reveal that the air quality in Taipei City improved over the last decade from 1994 to 2003, as evidenced by the significant downward trends of the various primary air pollutant concentrations, such as CO, NOX, SO2, and PM10. An air pollution fee was collected by TEPA in 1995, and several air pollution control measures were likewise taken to improve the air quality in Taiwan. However, although the extreme daily maximum O3 concentrations occurred more frequently in earlier years and showed a downward trend, its moderately high concentrations increased annually in recent years. It implied that after the reduction of various primary pollutant concentrations, the effective reduction of O3 pollution still remains an important issue. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]