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The most populated state in the United States, California, is projected to add millions of new inhabitants through the end of the current century, requiring considerable landscape conversion to the built environment. A suite of continuous multiyear, medium-range resolution (20-km grid spacing), ensemble-based simulations is examined to assess urban expansion climate effects on California in 2100, and potential strategies to alleviate them. Summertime [June-August (JJA)] warming due to urban expansion of 1°-2°C is greater relative to any other season, and is completely offset by a range of adaptation strategies: green roofs (highly transpiring), cool roofs (highly reflective), and hybrid roofs (with combined biophysical properties of green and cool roofs). After offsetting of urban-induced warming, cool and hybrid roofs lead to a further 1°-2°C reduction in JJA 2-m temperature, highlighting enhanced efficacy of these adaptation strategies. Guided by medium-range-resolution results, additional high-resolution (2-km grid spacing) experiments are conducted for a subset of the JJA periods conducted on a coarser scale. Urban-induced 1°-2°C warming (local maximum warming exceeds 4°C) is simulated, and is offset by cool and green roof deployment. In agreement with coarser-resolution results, maximum near-surface cooling is greater for cool roofs relative to green roofs. Reduced daytime warming associated with both cool and green roofs also modifies the convective mixed layer, reducing turbulent kinetic energy and planetary boundary layer height, although this impact is less for green roofs than for cool roofs. The results presented here demonstrate the importance of future urban expansion in California and illustrate climatic consequences with implications for regional air quality. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Abstract: Contaminants from cool-pigmented roof samples exposed at seven California sites were analyzed for elements and carbons to identify those that degrade or enhance solar reflectance. The losses in solar reflectance varied by site and the color of the sample. The least reflectance drop was observed in the alpine climate, while the largest drop occurred in sites near urban development. The change of reflectance appears cyclical with the onset of seasons having more rainfall. A deposition model suggests that chromium ranks first, iron second, and elemental carbon third in importance to soil light absorption. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]

Green roofs and rooftop solar photovoltaic (PV) systems are two popular mitigation strategies to reduce the net building energy demand and ease urban heat island (UHI) effect. This research tested the potential mitigation effects of green roofs and solar photovoltaic (PV) systems on increased buildings energy demand caused by climate change in Los Angeles County, California, USA. The mitigation effects were assessed based on selected buildings that were predicted to be more vulnerable to climate change. EnergyPlus software was used to simulate hourly building energy consumption with the proper settings of PV-green roofs. All buildings with green roofs showed positive energy savings with regard to total energy and electricity. The savings caused by green roofs were positively correlated with three key parameters: Leaf Area Index (LAI), soil depth, and irrigation saturation percentage. Moreover, the majority of the electricity-saving benefits from green roofs were found in the Heating, Ventilation, and Cooling (HVAC) systems. In addition, this study found that green roofs have different energy-saving abilities on different types of buildings with different technologies, which has received little attention in previous studies. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]