Impact of Urbanization on Local Climate Patterns in South Africa
DOI:
https://doi.org/10.47672/ajcs.2036Keywords:
Urbanization, Local Climate, PatternsAbstract
Purpose: The aim of the study was to assess the impact of urbanization on local climate patterns in South Africa.
Methodology: This study adopted a desk methodology. A desk study research design is commonly known as secondary data collection. This is basically collecting data from existing resources preferably because of its low cost advantage as compared to a field research. Our current study looked into already published studies and reports as the data was easily accessed through online journals and libraries.
Findings: Urban heat island (UHI) phenomenon, where cities experience higher temperatures compared to surrounding rural areas due to the absorption and retention of heat by buildings, roads, and infrastructure. This leads to increased energy consumption for cooling, elevated air pollution levels, and altered precipitation patterns. Additionally, urban areas often experience reduced vegetation cover, which diminishes the cooling effects of shade and evapotranspiration, further exacerbating the UHI effect. Changes in land use and surface properties can also disrupt local wind patterns, affecting air circulation and contributing to microclimatic variations within urban areas. Overall, the impact of urbanization on local climate patterns underscores the need for sustainable urban planning strategies to mitigate adverse effects and enhance urban resilience to climate change.
Implications to Theory, Practice and Policy: Urban heat island theory, land use/land cover change theory and social-ecological systems theory may be used to anchor future studies on assessing the impact of urbanization on local climate patterns in South Africa. Integrate green spaces, such as parks, green roofs, and urban forests, into urban design to mitigate urban heat island effects, improve air quality, and enhance resilience to climate extremes. Develop and implement climate adaptation plans that address the unique climate risks faced by urban areas, including heatwaves, flooding, and extreme weather events.
Downloads
References
Antonio, D. G. D., Sabater, M. C., & Dionisio, K. D. (2021). The effects of climate change on agriculture, water resources, and ecosystems in the Philippines. In Climate Change and Natural Disasters: Transforming Economies and Policies for a Sustainable Future (pp. 167-183). IGI Global. https://doi.org/10.4018/978-1-7998-8323-2.ch009
Anyadike, R. N. C., Azuh, D. E., Njoku, J. C., & Chineke, T. C. (2020). Variability and trends of climate parameters over Nigeria: 1981-2010. Theoretical and Applied Climatology, 141(1-2), 537-551. https://doi.org/10.1007/s00704-020-03418-4
Binder, C. R., Hinkel, J., Bots, P. W., Pahl-Wostl, C., Vervoort, J., & van der Brugge, R. (2021). Resilience in social-ecological systems: The roles of actors, practices and governing institutions. Ecology and Society, 26(1), 15. https://doi.org/10.5751/ES-12011-260115
Chen, A., Wang, Q., & Liu, Y. (2019). Assessment of Urbanization Effects on Urban Heat Island Intensity and Its Implications for Public Health. Environmental Research Letters, 14(5), 055006.
Chen, X., Zhang, Y., Mao, G., Huang, Y., Wang, Y., & Yin, S. (2020). Assessing urban heat island effect and its drivers in a rapidly urbanizing area. Sustainability, 12(21), 9155. https://doi.org/10.3390/su12219155
Conway, D., Dalin, C., Landman, W., Osborn, T., & Archer, E. (2019). Hydrometeorological trends in Africa - New perspectives using independent climate reconstructions and CMIP5 rainfall. Environmental Research Letters, 14(5), 055008. https://doi.org/10.1088/1748-9326/ab1223
Garcia, J., & Martinez, L. (2020). Impacts of Urbanization on Wind Patterns: A Case Study of Megacities in Developing Countries. Urban Climate, 34, 100674.
Goswami, B. N., Venugopal, V., Sengupta, D., Madhusoodanan, M. S., & Xavier, P. K. (2018). Increasing trend of extreme rain events over India in a warming environment. Science, 314(5804), 1442-1445. https://doi.org/10.1126/science.1132027
Hansen, J., Ruedy, R., Sato, M., & Lo, K. (2019). Global surface temperature change. Reviews of Geophysics, 57(1), 10-18. https://doi.org/10.1029/2018RG000612
Hidayati, D., Muchlis, A. R., Fathurahman, M. I., Sani, M., & Indrawati, S. R. (2019). Climate change vulnerability and adaptation in Indonesia: A systematic literature review. IOP Conference Series: Earth and Environmental Science, 387, 012031. https://doi.org/10.1088/1755-1315/387/1/012031
Islam, M. A., Sarker, M. H., Ullah, M. S., Akanda, M. S., Haque, M. A., Rahman, M. M., & Ahmed, M. A. (2020). Recent climatic changes and their impact on agriculture in Bangladesh. Environment, Development and Sustainability, 22(3), 1969-1987. https://doi.org/10.1007/s10668-019-00391-1
Jones, R., & Brown, S. (2018). Urbanization Impacts on Atmospheric Stability: A Case Study in Semi-Arid Regions. Atmospheric Environment, 183, 111-119.
Lambin, E. F., Meyfroidt, P., Rueda, X., Blackman, A., Börner, J., Cerutti, P. O., ... & Wunder, S. (2018). Effectiveness and synergies of policy instruments for land use governance in tropical regions. Global Environmental Change, 53, 199-213. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.gloenvcha.2018.09.002
Li, H., Wang, J., & Liu, M. (2021). Assessing the Influence of Urbanization on Surface Temperature Variability in Coastal Cities. Climate Dynamics, 56(11), 5349-5363.
Marengo, J. A., Souza, C. M., Thonicke, K., Burton, C., Halladay, K., Betts, R. A., Alves, L. M., & Soares, W. R. (2018). Changes in climate and land use over the Amazon region: Current and future variability and trends. Frontiers in Earth Science, 6, 228. https://doi.org/10.3389/feart.2018.00228
Ogutu-Ohwayo, R., Mugo, R. M., & Oyugi, D. O. (2018). Climate change and its implications for health, agriculture, and water resources in Kenya. Reviews on Environmental Health, 33(4), 371-380. https://doi.org/10.1515/reveh-2018-0018
Oke, T. R. (2017). The urban climate, 2nd Edition. Cambridge University Press.
Oludhe, C., Mutemi, J., Ongoma, V., & Mutua, F. (2021). Climate variability and trends in Kenya: A review. Environmental Development, 37, 100604. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.envdev.2020.100604
Seto, K. C., Dhakal, S., Bigio, A., Blanco, H., Delgado, G. C., Dewar, D., ... & Zhang, D. (2020). Human settlements, infrastructure and spatial planning. In Climate Change and Land (pp. 587-622). IPCC. https://doi.org/10.1017/9781108765049.014
Smith, T., & Johnson, K. (2019). Assessment of Urbanization Effects on Microclimate
Tanaka, K., Nemoto, J., & Hayashi, Y. (2018). Evaluation of future climate change scenarios and their effects on water temperature in the Tama River basin, Japan. Journal of Hydrology: Regional Studies, 15, 35-47. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.ejrh.2017.12.006
Tran, T. T., Trinh, T. H., & Vu, M. T. (2019). Spatiotemporal variability of climate parameters and their impact on rice yield in the Mekong River Delta, Vietnam. International Journal of Biometeorology, 63(5), 635-648. https://doi.org/10.1007/s00484-019-01704-1
Zhang, Y., Shen, H., & Sun, Y. (2018). Urbanization impact on temperature change in the Pearl River Delta during 2001-2015. Science of the Total Environment, 610-611, 1508-1518. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.scitotenv.2017.06.275
Downloads
Published
How to Cite
Issue
Section
License
Copyright (c) 2024 Michael Mtongana
This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License.
Authors retain copyright and grant the journal right of first publication with the work simultaneously licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution (CC-BY) 4.0 License that allows others to share the work with an acknowledgment of the work's authorship and initial publication in this journal.
