Quantitative Simulation and Planning for the Heat Island Mitigation Effect in Sponge City Planning: A Case Study of Chengdu, China

Abstract

The implementation of sponge cities in China modifies the hydrological conditions of the underlying surface, effectively alleviating the urban heat island effect. However, in planning and construction, heat island mitigation targets are difficult to quantify and lack quantitative design and evaluation methods. To address this issue, two planning schemes were proposed based on sponge city management and control indicators. The WRF-UCM model was used to conduct numerical simulations of the current conditions (case 1) and the sponge city planning schemes (cases 2 and 3), analyzing the impact of sponge city initiatives on the mitigation of the heat island effect. The results indicated that by changing the structure of the underlying surface and increasing the water content of the underlying surface, the sponge city affects the urban energy distribution process and regional horizontal advection pattern. This not only reduces heat accumulation within the urban area but also suppresses regional convection during high-temperature periods, thereby mitigating the urban heat island effect. Moreover, different schemes following the same sponge city design requirements have varying impacts on urban microclimate elements and heat island distributions. Notably, a higher subsurface water content yields a more pronounced inhibition of the heat island effect. Finally, a sponge city planning method with the consideration of heat island mitigation was proposed, facilitating pre-simulation optimization and decision-making in sponge city planning.