IDEAS home Printed from https://ideas.repec.org/a/nat/natcom/v12y2021i1d10.1038_s41467-021-26768-w.html
   My bibliography  Save this article

The role of urban trees in reducing land surface temperatures in European cities

Author

Listed:
  • Jonas Schwaab

    (Institute for Atmospheric and Climate Science, ETH Zurich)

  • Ronny Meier

    (Institute for Atmospheric and Climate Science, ETH Zurich)

  • Gianluca Mussetti

    (Institute for Atmospheric and Climate Science, ETH Zurich)

  • Sonia Seneviratne

    (Institute for Atmospheric and Climate Science, ETH Zurich)

  • Christine Bürgi

    (Institute for Atmospheric and Climate Science, ETH Zurich)

  • Edouard L. Davin

    (Institute for Atmospheric and Climate Science, ETH Zurich
    University of Bern)

Abstract

Urban trees influence temperatures in cities. However, their effectiveness at mitigating urban heat in different climatic contexts and in comparison to treeless urban green spaces has not yet been sufficiently explored. Here, we use high-resolution satellite land surface temperatures (LSTs) and land-cover data from 293 European cities to infer the potential of urban trees to reduce LSTs. We show that urban trees exhibit lower temperatures than urban fabric across most European cities in summer and during hot extremes. Compared to continuous urban fabric, LSTs observed for urban trees are on average 0-4 K lower in Southern European regions and 8-12 K lower in Central Europe. Treeless urban green spaces are overall less effective in reducing LSTs, and their cooling effect is approximately 2-4 times lower than the cooling induced by urban trees. By revealing continental-scale patterns in the effect of trees and treeless green spaces on urban LST our results highlight the importance of considering and further investigating the climate-dependent effectiveness of heat mitigation measures in cities.

Suggested Citation

  • Jonas Schwaab & Ronny Meier & Gianluca Mussetti & Sonia Seneviratne & Christine Bürgi & Edouard L. Davin, 2021. "The role of urban trees in reducing land surface temperatures in European cities," Nature Communications, Nature, vol. 12(1), pages 1-11, December.
    • Handle: RePEc:nat:natcom:v:12:y:2021:i:1:d:10.1038_s41467-021-26768-w
    DOI: 10.1038/s41467-021-26768-w
    as

    Download full text from publisher

    File URL: https://www.nature.com/articles/s41467-021-26768-w
    File Function: Abstract
    Download Restriction: no
    File URL: https://libkey.io/10.1038/s41467-021-26768-w?utm_source=ideas
    LibKey link: if access is restricted and if your library uses this service, LibKey will redirect you to where you can use your library subscription to access this item
    ---><---

    References listed on IDEAS

    as
    1. Tsiros, Ioannis X., 2010. "Assessment and energy implications of street air temperature cooling by shade tress in Athens (Greece) under extremely hot weather conditions," Renewable Energy, Elsevier, vol. 35(8), pages 1866-1869.
    2. Lei Zhao & Xuhui Lee & Ronald B. Smith & Keith Oleson, 2014. "Strong contributions of local background climate to urban heat islands," Nature, Nature, vol. 511(7508), pages 216-219, July.
    3. Yan Li & Maosheng Zhao & Safa Motesharrei & Qiaozhen Mu & Eugenia Kalnay & Shuangcheng Li, 2015. "Local cooling and warming effects of forests based on satellite observations," Nature Communications, Nature, vol. 6(1), pages 1-8, May.
    4. Gabriele Manoli & Simone Fatichi & Markus Schläpfer & Kailiang Yu & Thomas W. Crowther & Naika Meili & Paolo Burlando & Gabriel G. Katul & Elie Bou-Zeid, 2019. "Magnitude of urban heat islands largely explained by climate and population," Nature, Nature, vol. 573(7772), pages 55-60, September.
    Full references (including those not matched with items on IDEAS)

    Citations

    Citations are extracted by the CitEc Project, subscribe to its RSS feed for this item.
    as


    Cited by:

    1. Ben Brunckhorst & Ruth Hill & Ghazala Mansuri & Trang Nguyen & Miki Doan, 2023. "Climate and Equity," World Bank Publications - Reports 39952, The World Bank Group.
    2. Orazio Valerio Giannico & Rodolfo Sardone & Lucia Bisceglia & Francesco Addabbo & Francesco Pirotti & Sante Minerba & Antonia Mincuzzi, 2024. "The mortality impacts of greening Italy," Nature Communications, Nature, vol. 15(1), pages 1-17, December.
    3. Neier, Thomas, 2023. "The green divide: A spatial analysis of segregation-based environmental inequality in Vienna," Ecological Economics, Elsevier, vol. 213(C).
    4. Jahidur Rahman Khan & K. Shuvo Bakar & Ying Zhang, 2024. "Residential land surface temperature and diabetes among urban adults in Bangladesh," Environment, Development and Sustainability: A Multidisciplinary Approach to the Theory and Practice of Sustainable Development, Springer, vol. 26(8), pages 21553-21565, August.
    5. Shengbiao Wu & Bin Chen & Chris Webster & Bing Xu & Peng Gong, 2023. "Improved human greenspace exposure equality during 21st century urbanization," Nature Communications, Nature, vol. 14(1), pages 1-11, December.
    6. Yuxiang Li & Jens-Christian Svenning & Weiqi Zhou & Kai Zhu & Jesse F. Abrams & Timothy M. Lenton & William J. Ripple & Zhaowu Yu & Shuqing N. Teng & Robert R. Dunn & Chi Xu, 2024. "Green spaces provide substantial but unequal urban cooling globally," Nature Communications, Nature, vol. 15(1), pages 1-13, December.
    7. Eggimann, Sven, 2022. "Expanding urban green space with superblocks," Land Use Policy, Elsevier, vol. 117(C).
    8. Zamponi, Virginia & O’Brien, Kevin & Jensen, Erik & Feldhaus, Brandon & Moore, Russell & Lynch, Christopher J. & Gore, Ross, 2023. "Understanding and assessing demographic (in)equity resulting from extreme heat and direct sunlight exposure due to lack of tree canopies in Norfolk, VA using agent-based modeling," Ecological Modelling, Elsevier, vol. 483(C).

    Most related items

    These are the items that most often cite the same works as this one and are cited by the same works as this one.
    1. Soumya Satyakanta Sethi & V. Vinoj & Partha Pratim Gogoi & Kiranmayi Landu & Debadatta Swain & U. C. Mohanty, 2024. "Spatio-temporal evolution of surface urban heat island over Bhubaneswar-Cuttack twin city: a rapidly growing tropical urban complex in Eastern India," Environment, Development and Sustainability: A Multidisciplinary Approach to the Theory and Practice of Sustainable Development, Springer, vol. 26(6), pages 15381-15402, June.
    2. Runfei Zhong & Song Song & Jianxin Zhang & Ziqiang Ye, 2024. "Spatial–temporal variation and temperature effect of urbanization in Guangdong Province from 1951 to 2018," Environment, Development and Sustainability: A Multidisciplinary Approach to the Theory and Practice of Sustainable Development, Springer, vol. 26(4), pages 9661-9683, April.
    3. Patryk Antoszewski & Dariusz Świerk & Michał Krzyżaniak, 2020. "Statistical Review of Quality Parameters of Blue-Green Infrastructure Elements Important in Mitigating the Effect of the Urban Heat Island in the Temperate Climate (C) Zone," IJERPH, MDPI, vol. 17(19), pages 1-36, September.
    4. Yuxiang Li & Jens-Christian Svenning & Weiqi Zhou & Kai Zhu & Jesse F. Abrams & Timothy M. Lenton & William J. Ripple & Zhaowu Yu & Shuqing N. Teng & Robert R. Dunn & Chi Xu, 2024. "Green spaces provide substantial but unequal urban cooling globally," Nature Communications, Nature, vol. 15(1), pages 1-13, December.
    5. Aerzuna Abulimiti & Yongqiang Liu & Lianmei Yang & Abuduwaili Abulikemu & Yusuyunjiang Mamitimin & Shuai Yuan & Reifat Enwer & Zhiyi Li & Abidan Abuduaini & Zulipina Kadier, 2024. "Urbanization Effect on Changes in Extreme Climate Events in Urumqi, China, from 1976 to 2018," Land, MDPI, vol. 13(3), pages 1-25, February.
    6. Kaustubh Anil Salvi & Mukesh Kumar, 2024. "Imprint of urbanization on snow precipitation over the continental USA," Nature Communications, Nature, vol. 15(1), pages 1-11, December.
    7. Ziyang Ma & Huyan Fu & Jianghai Wen & Zhiru Chen, 2024. "Evaluating Urban Heat Island Effects in the Southwestern Plateau of China: A Comparative Analysis of Nine Estimation Methods," Land, MDPI, vol. 14(1), pages 1-26, December.
    8. Huihui Wang & Yunsong Yang & Suru Liu & Hanyu Xue & Tingting Xu & Wanlin He & Xiaoyong Gao & Ruifeng Jiang, 2024. "Unveiling the Coupling Coordination and Interaction Mechanism between the Local Heat Island Effect and Urban Resilience in China," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 16(6), pages 1-28, March.
    9. Wenqi Jiang & Yuanyuan Wang & Mengmeng Zhang, 2025. "Exploring the Industrial Heat Island Effects and Key Influencing Factors in the Guangzhou–Foshan Metropolitan Area," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 17(8), pages 1-22, April.
    10. Chi Chen & Yang Li & Xuhui Wang & Xiangzhong Luo & Yue Li & Yu Cheng & Zhe Zhu, 2024. "Biophysical effects of croplands on land surface temperature," Nature Communications, Nature, vol. 15(1), pages 1-10, December.
    11. Patryk Antoszewski & Michał Krzyżaniak & Dariusz Świerk, 2022. "The Future of Climate-Resilient and Climate-Neutral City in the Temperate Climate Zone," IJERPH, MDPI, vol. 19(7), pages 1-60, April.
    12. Bing Li & Zhifeng Liu & Ying Nan & Shengnan Li & Yanmin Yang, 2018. "Comparative Analysis of Urban Heat Island Intensities in Chinese, Russian, and DPRK Regions across the Transnational Urban Agglomeration of the Tumen River in Northeast Asia," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 10(8), pages 1-16, July.
    13. Giuseppina A. Giorgio & Maria Ragosta & Vito Telesca, 2017. "Climate Variability and Industrial-Suburban Heat Environment in a Mediterranean Area," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 9(5), pages 1-10, May.
    14. David Hidalgo García & Julián Arco Díaz & Adelaida Martín Martín & Emilio Gómez Cobos, 2022. "Spatiotemporal Analysis of Urban Thermal Effects Caused by Heat Waves through Remote Sensing," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 14(19), pages 1-24, September.
    15. Li, Ruibin & Zhao, Yi & Chang, Min & Zeng, Fanxing & Wu, Yan & Wang, Liangzhu (Leon) & Niu, Jianlei & Shi, Xing & Gao, Naiping, 2024. "Numerical simulation methods of tree effects on microclimate: A review," Renewable and Sustainable Energy Reviews, Elsevier, vol. 205(C).
    16. Wan Ting Katty Huang & Pierre Masselot & Elie Bou-Zeid & Simone Fatichi & Athanasios Paschalis & Ting Sun & Antonio Gasparrini & Gabriele Manoli, 2023. "Economic valuation of temperature-related mortality attributed to urban heat islands in European cities," Nature Communications, Nature, vol. 14(1), pages 1-12, December.
    17. Ali Ismaeel & Amos P. K. Tai & Erone Ghizoni Santos & Heveakore Maraia & Iris Aalto & Jan Altman & Jiří Doležal & Jonas J. Lembrechts & José Luís Camargo & Juha Aalto & Kateřina Sam & Lair Cristina Av, 2024. "Patterns of tropical forest understory temperatures," Nature Communications, Nature, vol. 15(1), pages 1-10, December.
    18. Nandini Halder & Manoj Kumar & Akshay Deepak & Shailendra K. Mandal & Amjad Azmeer & Basit A. Mir & Anissa Nurdiawati & Sami G. Al-Ghamdi, 2025. "The Role of Urban Greenery in Enhancing Thermal Comfort: Systematic Review Insights," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 17(6), pages 1-30, March.
    19. Marcin K. Widomski & Anna Musz-Pomorska & Justyna Gołębiowska, 2023. "Hydrologic Effectiveness and Economic Efficiency of Green Architecture in Selected Urbanized Catchment," Land, MDPI, vol. 12(7), pages 1-19, June.
    20. Shaojing Jiang, 2023. "Compound Heat Vulnerability in the Record-Breaking Hot Summer of 2022 over the Yangtze River Delta Region," IJERPH, MDPI, vol. 20(8), pages 1-15, April.

    More about this item

    Statistics

    Access and download statistics

    Corrections

    All material on this site has been provided by the respective publishers and authors. You can help correct errors and omissions. When requesting a correction, please mention this item's handle: RePEc:nat:natcom:v:12:y:2021:i:1:d:10.1038_s41467-021-26768-w. See general information about how to correct material in RePEc.

    If you have authored this item and are not yet registered with RePEc, we encourage you to do it here. This allows to link your profile to this item. It also allows you to accept potential citations to this item that we are uncertain about.

    If CitEc recognized a bibliographic reference but did not link an item in RePEc to it, you can help with this form .

    If you know of missing items citing this one, you can help us creating those links by adding the relevant references in the same way as above, for each refering item. If you are a registered author of this item, you may also want to check the "citations" tab in your RePEc Author Service profile, as there may be some citations waiting for confirmation.

    For technical questions regarding this item, or to correct its authors, title, abstract, bibliographic or download information, contact: Sonal Shukla or Springer Nature Abstracting and Indexing (email available below). General contact details of provider: http://www.nature.com .

    Please note that corrections may take a couple of weeks to filter through the various RePEc services.

    IDEAS is a RePEc service. RePEc uses bibliographic data supplied by the respective publishers.