Publications

The combination of urbanization and global warming leads to urban overheating and compounds the frequency and intensity of extreme heat events due to climate change. Yet, the risk of urban overheating can be mitigated by urban green-blue-grey infrastructure (GBGI), such as parks, wetlands, and engineered greening, which have the potential to effectively reduce summer air temperatures. Despite many reviews, the evidence bases on quantified GBGI cooling benefits remains partial and the practical recommendations for implementation are unclear. This systematic literature review synthesizes the evidence base for heat mitigation and related co-benefits, identifies knowledge gaps, and proposes recommendations for their implementation to maximize their benefits. After screening 27,486 papers, 202 were reviewed, based on 51 GBGI types categorized under 10 main divisions. Certain GBGI (green walls, parks, street trees) have been well researched for their urban cooling capabilities. However, several other GBGI have received negligible (zoological garden, golf course, estuary) or minimal (private garden, allotment) attention. The most efficient air cooling was observed in botanical gardens (5.0 ± 3.5°C), wetlands (4.9 ± 3.2°C), green walls (4.1 ± 4.2°C), street trees (3.8 ± 3.1°C), and vegetated balconies (3.8 ± 2.7°C). Under changing climate conditions (2070-2100) with consideration of RCP8.5, there is a shift in climate subtypes, either within the same climate zone (e.g., Dfa to Dfb and Cfb to Cfa) or across other climate zones (e.g., Dfb [continental warm-summer humid] to BSk [dry, cold semi-arid] and Cwa [temperate] to Am [tropical]). These shifts may result in lower efficiency for the current GBGI in the future. Given the importance of multiple services, it is crucial to balance their functionality, cooling performance, and other related co-benefits when planning for the future GBGI. This global GBGI heat mitigation inventory can assist policymakers and urban planners in prioritizing effective interventions to reduce the risk of urban overheating, filling research gaps, and promoting community resilience.

Abstract While the physical and mental health benefits of greenspace exposure are well documented, ethnic minority communities in the United Kingdom continue to engage with these environments at disproportionately lower rates. This persistent disparity points to an oversight in existing literature, specifically regarding how these communities navigate everyday encounters with nature. This qualitative study employs interviews and diary methods to explore the restorative processes, motivations and preferences of ethnic minority residents in Bristol, United Kingdom. By communicating these experiences through the novel approach of composite narratives, the research endeavours to situate lived realities within intersectional contexts, ensuring the findings remain nuanced and resistant to essentialist assumptions. Our findings reveal that engagement with nature is a purposeful element of daily life, with psychological restoration serving as a conscious and instrumental strategy for well‐being. Distinct preferences revealed a range of landscape typologies, including blue spaces, urban woodlands and family‐oriented parks, while a range of constraints to engagement and visitation were also present. Using composite narratives further illuminates the role of social relationships in shaping greenspace experiences, highlighting a tension between positive experiences and overlapping constraints. While participants negotiate challenges that are both universal and culturally specific, these obstacles do not simply override restorative encounters; instead, they form a constellation that evolves across multiple scales. This study demonstrates that, despite these constraints, urban greenspaces remain vital resources for these communities. The findings underscore the necessity of enhancing everyday access for those who need it most, living in densely populated or low‐income urban areas. By developing safe, welcoming environments and including communities in environmental planning, we can instil more equitable approaches to provision that enhance well‐being for all urban residents. Read the free Plain Language Summary for this article on the Journal blog.

Sustainability of bivalve shellfish farming relies on clean coastal waters, however, high levels of faecal indicator organisms (FIOs, e.g. Escherichia coli) in shellfish results in temporary closure of shellfish harvesting beds to protect human health, but with economic consequences for the shellfish industry. Active Management Systems which can predict FIO contamination may help reduce shellfishery closures. This study evaluated predictors of E. coli concentrations in two shellfish species, the blue mussel (Mytilus edulis) and the Pacific oyster (Crassostrea gigas), at different spatial and temporal scales, within 12 estuaries in England and Wales. We aimed to: (i) identify consistent catchment-scale or within-estuary predictors of elevated E. coli levels in shellfish, (ii) evaluate whether high river flows associated with rainfall events were a significant predictor of shellfish E. coli concentrations, and the time lag between these events and E. coli accumulation, and (iii) whether operation of Combined Sewer Overflows (CSO) is associated with higher E. coli concentrations in shellfish. A cross-catchment analysis gave a good predictive model for contamination management (R

Human activity has significantly increased the deposition of nitrogen (N) on terrestrial ecosystems over pre-industrial levels leading to a multitude of effects including losses of biodiversity, changes in ecosystem functioning, and impacts on human well-being. It is challenging to explicitly link the level of deposition on an ecosystem to the cascade of ecological effects triggered and ecosystem services affected, because of the multitude of possible pathways in the N cascade. To address this challenge, we report on the activities of an expert workshop to synthesize information on N-induced terrestrial eutrophication from the published literature and to link critical load exceedances with human beneficiaries by using the STressor-Ecological Production function-final ecosystem Services Framework and the Final Ecosystem Goods and Services Classification System (FEGS-CS). We found 21 N critical loads were triggered by N deposition (ranging from 2 to 39 kg N·ha

The International Cooperative Programme on Effects of Air Pollution on Natural Vegetation and Crops (ICP Vegetation) was established in 1987. It is led by the UK and has its Programme Coordination Centre at the Centre for Ecology and Hydrology (CEH) in Bangor. It is one of seven ICPs and Task Forces that report to the Working Group on Effects (WGE) of the Convention on Long-range Transboundary Air Pollution (LRTAP Convention) on the effects of atmospheric pollutants on different components of the environment (e.g. forests, fresh waters, materials) and health in Europe and North-America. Today, the ICP Vegetation comprises an enthusiastic group of over 200 scientists from 35 countries in the UNECE region with outreach activities to other regions such as Asia, Central America and Africa. An overview of contributions to the WGE workplan and other research activities in the year 2012/13 is provided in this report.

• High-resolution mobile and stationary monitoring in a tropical megacity park. • PM 2 . 5 and noise fell by 0.07 µg m⁻ 3 and 0.29 dB per 100 m toward the park core. • Dense park interiors cut PM 2 . 5 /BC by 31–40% and noise by > 6 dB vs. edges. • Afternoon temperature rose 0.2 °C per 100 m from the park into built-up areas. • Dense tree canopy sites prevented midday heat stress (UTCI ∼ 21.7 °C). Rapid urbanisation in tropical megacities intensifies critical environmental stressors, including urban overheating, particulate air pollution (PM 2.5 and black carbon (BC)), and noise. Green-Blue-Grey Infrastructure (GBGI) offers a promising nature-based solution, yet major knowledge gaps exist regarding its empirical, multifunctional performance and diurnal dynamics in complex tropical settings. This study quantifies how vegetation in a large urban park (Ibirapuera Park, São Paulo) moderates microclimate, improves air quality, and attenuates noise, while assessing the influence of canopy structure and spatial location on these benefits. A comprehensive mixed-method approach was employed during a 15-day intensive field campaign. High-resolution spatiotemporal data on PM 2.5 , BC, carbon dioxide (CO 2 ), noise, and meteorological parameters were collected through a combination of stationary monitoring at nine ecologically distinct sites and mobile transect monitoring across an urban-park gradient. These observations were complemented by thermal imagery and sky view factor (SVF) analysis. The park delivered substantial and dynamic environmental benefits. Dense vegetation reduced PM 2.5 and BC by up to 40%, with mobile gradients of 0.07 and 0.03 µg m⁻ 3 per 100 m toward the park core, respectively. Cooling averaged 1–2 °C, strengthening to 0.2 °C per 100 m outward in afternoons. A distinct temporal duality emerged: peak cooling occurred in the afternoon, while the strongest air quality improvements occurred in the morning before dense canopy began retaining pollutants. Noise attenuation was modest (∼6 dB), with reductions of 0.29 dB and 0.25 dB per 100 m in morning and afternoon transects. Overall, the park functions as a multifunctional environmental regulator, with benefits shaped by vegetation density, spatial configuration, and time of day. Effective GBGI planning in tropical megacities should prioritise deep vegetative cores (≥250–300 m from major roads), multi-tiered buffers along traffic corridors, and dense canopy structures (SVF < 0.4). Integrating SVF into zoning and expanding networked green corridors can extend these co-benefits, strengthening climate resilience, public health, and urban liveability.