Aslan Shand
How well we survive the future depends on our vision for our towns and suburbs – and on how we bring that vision about.
Increasing population in the Northern Rivers is leading to an increase in housing, traffic, and roads, all of which increase the number of hard, non-porous surfaces. These harder surfaces absorb heat and increase the temperature in towns and urban areas, as well as increase flooding.
It is easy to feel the heat impacts with a trip to a large shopping-centre precinct. On a hot day you can feel the heat pulsating off the buildings, roads, and car parks.
Architecture news & editorial desk
Urban tree canopies and green spaces have become unwitting casualties of current environmental planning and engineering standards, says leading urban planning and design practice Hatch RobertsDay.
Despite the focus on sustainable development, the green cover has declined in 69 per cent of Australia’s urban areas, precipitating a rise in temperature
.[1] According to Hatch RobertsDay, developers and planners must prioritise urban tree canopy in their projects to increase the liveability of Australian cities and reduce the urban heat island effect.
Hatch RobertsDay WA urban designer Peter Ciemitis and WA planner Dan Pearce had recently presented on the topic at the WA Local Government Association’s ‘Trees in a Liveable City: An Urban Forest Conference’.