Determining potential planting areas in urban regions

Area of Science:

• Urban ecology and environmental management
• Geographic Information Systems (GIS) and remote sensing applications
• Sustainable urban planning and development

Background:

• Increasing impermeable surfaces in Turkey, driven by urban sprawl, exacerbate urban environmental issues like air pollution and flooding.
• Urban afforestation is a key strategy to counteract the negative impacts of increased imperviousness and improve urban ecosystems.
• Existing urban landscapes require careful planning to integrate new green spaces effectively.

Purpose of the Study:

• To identify and map suitable areas for urban afforestation within Bartın Municipality.
• To determine the potential increase in tree canopy cover through strategic planting.
• To enhance the ecological conditions and resilience of the urban environment.

Main Methods:

• Utilized IKONOS satellite imagery analyzed with ENVI and GIS software.
• Employed GIS-based decision-making mechanisms, considering urban density and excluding unsuitable small or infrastructurally close areas.
• Determined planting grids (5x5m, 10x10m, 15x15m) based on tree size and locational suitability, incorporating existing vegetation data.

Main Results:

• Identified potential planting areas and planned for 29,773 trees, projecting a 0.71 km² increase in canopy cover.
• Calculated that the planned afforestation would increase Bartın's total canopy cover by approximately 2%.
• The majority of planned trees (93.34%) are small, indicating a focus on dense urban planting strategies.

Conclusions:

• The study successfully mapped potential afforestation sites, providing a data-driven approach for urban greening in Bartın.
• Implementing the proposed afforestation plan will significantly contribute to improving Bartın's urban ecosystem and mitigating environmental challenges.
• This methodology offers a scalable model for other cities facing similar urban sprawl and environmental pressures.