Han, Q and Keeffe, G (2020) Stepping stones: Assessing the permeability of urban greenspaces to climate-driven migration of trees. Smart and Sustainable Built Environment, 9(3), pp. 246-257. ISSN 2046-6099
Abstract
Purpose: Large-scale urbanisation has become a significant barrier to the natural migration of tree species, which is being exacerbated by accelerated climate change. Within this context, improving the permeability of urban landscapes is expected to be an effective strategy to facilitate the process of forest migration through cities. The purpose of this paper is to develop a method to assess the permeability of urban green spaces as stepping stones for forest migration, from the perspective of seed dispersal. Design/methodology/approach: The proposed method combines a least-cost path (LCP) model and a graph theory-based approach. The LCP model is applied to map the potential pathways of seed dispersal at multiple spatial and temporal scales, based on which graph theory-based indices are used to quantify the accessibility of urban landscapes for seed dispersers. This method is demonstrated by a case study in the Greater Manchester area, UK. Eurasian jay, Eurasian siskin, coal tit and grey squirrel are selected as the main seed dispersers in the study area. Findings: The results provide a comparison of the landscape permeability maps generated from different seed dispersers and identify key areas likely to facilitate the process of forest migration. Recommendations regarding landscape management for improving permeability are also discussed. Originality/value: This method allows designers to re-visualise highly modified and fragmented urban landscapes as stepping stones for seed dispersal, which in turn allows for a more piecemeal form of landscape design to optimise urban landscapes for climate adaptation.
| Item Type: | Article |
|---|---|
| Uncontrolled Keywords: | climate change; graph theory; range shift; tree migration; urban landscape |
| Index terms: | landscape design, graph theory, urbanization, urban green space, accessibility, case study, migration, designer, climate adaptation, methodology, climate change, permeability, forest, maps, strategy |
| Subjects: | climate science, profession, data collection methods, environmental science, urban planning, sustainable design, material properties and characteristics, inclusive design, spatial and geospatial analysis, research methods, management, theoretical framing, design practice, demography |
| Topics: | Business Strategy, Construction Materials, Research Practice, Roles and Professions, Governance, Sustainability, Urban Studies, Design Practice |
| Descriptive scope: | 5 PCTEA |
N.B. Descriptive scope is a count of how many of the five facets of empirical research are indicated by the words used in title, abstract and keywords. It is not intended as a judgement on the research; merely a count of the kind of word we would expect to indicate Phenomenon, Concepts, Theoretical framing, Empirical techniques, Analytical techniques. If all five are present, then a code of “5 PCTEA” will indicate this. If you feel the coding for this record is questionable, we welcome discussion around the terms we matched or the way we categorized them. The facet you would expect may not be coded, or a facet may be coded inappropriately. This can also bear on a larger question, of which facets should be treated as defining in construction management research. Please get in touch, and we will look at it. More details here