Urban Climatic Map of Salvador, Brazil, using a Land Use Pattern Methodology

Abstract

This paper presents the development of the methodology used to create an Urban Climatic Analytical Map (UC-AnMap) of Salvador, Brazil, based on its Land Use Patterns Map (MPO). Located in the Northeast Region of Brazil, Salvador is currently the fourth most populous city in the country, with nearly three million people. First, the MPO was used as a layer; then, an updated version of the MPO was used as a fundamental layer to derive thematic maps based on the distinct urban morphologies found in the city. MPOs are suggested here as a starting methodological procedure, a facilitative tool for the construction of an Urban Climatic Map. MPOs allow the variety of urban land use patterns to be captured and are based on universally available information, such as Google Earth images and tools, regardless of the existence of sophisticated and costly databases, which are not usually accessible in cities in developing countries. MPOs involve identifying and delimiting visually homogeneous land use areas in polygons at an adequate scale of 1:10,000. Similar areas are grouped under the same patterns, regardless of their urban functions, creating a classification system that characterizes different existing patterns by their distinct urban attributes. Salvador’s social and economic inequalities have produced ongoing unequal urban patterns, and institutional and structural factors have contributed to the absence of up-to-date digital urban databases. Given the local context, the Salvador UC-AnMap could not have been made without developing an MPO.