Natural Solutions to Combat Urban Heat and Noise Islands: Investigation of Earth-Sheltered Buildings, Green Roofs and Urban Plantations (Accepted)

Sarul M., Koçyiğit F. B., Yılmaz Ç.

Journal of Mediterranean Cities, cilt.4, sa.3, ss.1-8, 2025 (Hakemli Dergi)

  • Yayın Türü: Makale / Tam Makale
  • Cilt numarası: 4 Sayı: 3
  • Basım Tarihi: 2025
  • Dergi Adı: Journal of Mediterranean Cities
  • Derginin Tarandığı İndeksler: Other Indexes
  • Sayfa Sayıları: ss.1-8
  • Akdeniz Üniversitesi Adresli: Evet

Özet

Urban areas with higher temperatures than surrounding rural areas are defined as “Urban Heat Islands” (UHI), while “Urban Noise Islands” (UNI) are defined as higher noise levels. These two problems often occur simultaneously in the same place. The use of high-reflective cool materials and sound-absorbing materials in building envelopes are common methods applied to mitigate UHI and UNI. The aim of this study is to investigate natural solutions such as earth-sheltered buildings, green roofs, green walls, urban-scale plantations, parks, water bodies, and rain gardens. The current study includes relevant applied techniques and significant results revealed in the literature works. In this study, the use of the proposed natural methods aims to mitigate UHI and UNI, as well as to make multifaceted contributions to the fields of architecture and urban planning, such as increasing energy efficiency, reducing carbon emissions, creating aesthetic and social areas at the urban scale, and supporting biodiversity.