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Assessing green spaces from a health and well-being perspective. Case study area: Municipal Garden and People's Peace and Friendship Park, Chania, Crete, Greece

Konstantinou Fani

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Summary

Modern man lives in a degraded urban environment, characterized by severe climatic conditions, poor air quality and noise pollution, which have an adverse effect on his physical and psychological health. Given this, the need for urban green spaces is becoming increasingly urgent for the lives of urban residents. Many studies have been carried out to show that the loss and degradation of urban greenery contributes to the deterioration of the health and well-being of city dwellers, as the effects of the adverse conditions produced by the urban environment, such as high temperatures, air pollution and noise, are exacerbated. The existence of urban green spaces or nature-based solutions (NBS) offers opportunities for physical exercise, mental rehabilitation and relaxation, while at the same time it’s helping ameliorate the effects of the above-mentioned adverse factors caused by the urban environment.In this thesis two busy green spaces of the city of Chania, the Municipal Garden and the Park of Peace and Friendship, are evaluated using selected indicators of climate resilience and air quality from the international literature. The aim of the study is to highlight the qualitative characteristics of green space (reduction of ambient temperature, removal of pollutants, etc.) that contribute to the improvement of health and well-being of the city's residents. This evaluation will contribute to the identification of good practices and the improvement of the design of these spaces by future urban planners.To evaluate the green space under study, the data of air temperature and relative humidity recorded by sensors placed in the green and outdoor urban space were processed. Also, the data of air temperature, relative humidity and radiation temperature recorded by a portable tripod weather station was analyzed. To estimate the thermal stresses experienced by humans inside and outside the green space, the Universal Thermal Climate Index (UTCI) was calculated. In addition, in order to calculate the removal potential of air pollutants and to calculate the carbon sequestration/storage by vegetation, the I-Tree Eco software was used with data that was collected on-site from the green space (number of trees, species, size of trees and their crown, exposure of tree sides to the sun, etc.).The results obtained from the processing of the collected data highlight the necessity of the existence of green spaces in cities and the need for further research to fully assess the contribution of this space to the health and well-being of the residents of the city of Chania.

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