Rather than following a linear relationship, the relationship between area (“size of analytical unit”) and cooling efficiency (“CE”) — the temperature reduction associated with a 1% increase in urban tree canopy — follows a statistical power (IMAGE)
Caption
Rather than following a linear relationship, the relationship between area (“size of analytical unit”) and cooling efficiency (“CE”) — the temperature reduction associated with a 1% increase in urban tree canopy — follows a statistical power law. That is, as the area size initially increases, urban planners can get more bang for their buck — each 1% increase in tree canopy cover offers additional cooling benefits. The line tends to level out at larger and larger scales. The relationship holds across four cities: Sacramento (A), Baltimore (B), Beijing (C), and Shenzhen (D). Image: Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences
Credit
Wang J, W Zhou, STA Pickett, and Y Qian. 2024. A scaling law for predicting urban trees canopy cooling efficiency. Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences, Vol. 121, Iss. 0. https://doi.org/10.1073/pnas.2401210121
Usage Restrictions
To promote this press release
License
Original content