We aspire to shape existing cities as smart cities. Will it work?
Can you imagine city without steel and concrete? No. Besides usual usage in building homes and other shared usage, it is now part of roads and other land usages (Metro, Flyovers etc).
Steel and concrete absorbs and radiate more heat than their surroundings, raising the temperature in city area and creating the urban heat sinks or islands. This temperature also affects the surface energy balance. This in turn reduces surface moisture in a city. So even land free from concrete and steel is also under constant moisture depression.
A researcher found that high UHI (Urban Heat Island) intensity correlates with increased concentrations of air pollutants that gathered at night, which can affect the next day’s air quality. These pollutants include volatile organic compounds, carbon monoxide, nitrogen oxides, and particulate matter. The production of these pollutants combined with the higher temperatures in UHIs can quicken the production of ozone. You see the cascading impact?
This can be controlled when there is a planned city limit. Right now, we really do not have city limits.
This can be controlled when distance between two habitat (village or town or city) are maintained. No inter-city distance planned.
Public transport usage can also help.
Trees plantation can help but not significantly as it has huge steel and concrete to compete with. City limit is key here. Boundary. No more development beyond certain point. Or better, city mingled with forest.
City centers are growing like a cancer tumor. Attracting more and more from surroundings to make the place more dense and polluted.
Are there provisions for these issues in smart city planning?
