scholarly journals Producing Urban Aerobiological Risk Map for Cupressaceae Family in the SW Iberian Peninsula from LiDAR Technology

2020 ◽  
Vol 12 (10) ◽  
pp. 1562
Author(s):  
Raúl Pecero-Casimiro ◽  
Santiago Fernández-Rodríguez ◽  
Rafael Tormo-Molina ◽  
Inmaculada Silva-Palacios ◽  
Ángela Gonzalo-Garijo ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Urban Areas ◽  
Pollen Production ◽  
Cupressus Sempervirens ◽  
Pollution Levels ◽  
Platycladus Orientalis ◽  
Digital Elevation ◽  
Surface Models ◽  
Cupressus Arizonica ◽  
Ornamental Trees ◽  
Restaurant Owners

Given the rise in the global population and the consequently high levels of pollution, urban green areas, such as those that include plants in the Cupressaceae family, are suitable to reduce the pollution levels, improving the air quality. However, some species with ornamental value are also very allergenic species whose planting should be regulated and their pollen production reduced by suitable pruning. The Aerobiological Index to create Risk maps for Ornamental Trees (AIROT), in its previous version, already included parameters that other indexes did not consider, such as the width of the streets, the height of buildings and the geographical characteristics of cities. It can be considered by working with LiDAR (Light Detection and Ranging) data from five urban areas, which were used to create the DEM and DSM (digital elevation and surface models) needed to create one of the parameters. Pollen production is proposed as a parameter (α) based on characteristics and uses in the forms of hedges or trees that will be incorporated into the index. It will allow the comparison of different species for the evaluation of the pruning effect when aerobiological risks are established. The maps for some species of Cupressaceae (Cupressus arizonica, Cupressus macrocarpa, Cupressus sempervirens, Cupressocyparis leylandii and Platycladus orientalis) generated in a GIS (geographic information system) from the study of several functions of Kriging, have been used in cities to identify aerobiological risks in areas of tourist and gastronomic interest. Thus, allergy patients can make decisions about the places to visit depending on the levels of risk near those areas. The AIROT index provides valuable information for allergy patients, tourists, urban planning councillors and restaurant owners in order to structure the vegetation, as well as planning tourism according to the surrounding environmental risks and reducing the aerobiological risk of certain areas.

scholarly journals Enhanced DEM-based flow path delineation methods for urban flood modelling

2012 ◽  
Vol 15 (2) ◽  
pp. 568-579
Author(s):  
J. P. Leitão ◽  
D. Prodanović ◽  
S. Boonya-aroonnet ◽  
Č. Maksimović
Keyword(s):  
Urban Areas ◽  
Overland Flow ◽  
Flow Path ◽  
Flow Paths ◽  
Urban Flood ◽  
Bouncing Ball ◽  
Digital Elevation ◽  
Synthetic Test ◽  
Water Accumulation ◽  
Flooding Events

In order to simulate surface runoff and flooding, one-dimensional (1D) overland flow networks can be automatically delineated using digital elevation models (DEM). The resulting network comprises flow paths and terrain depressions/ponds and is essential to reliably model pluvial (surface) flooding events in urban areas by so-called 1D/1D models. Conventional automatic DEM-based flow path delineation methods have problems in producing realistic overland flow paths when detailed high-resolution DEMs of urban areas are used. The aim of this paper is to present the results of research and development of three enhanced DEM-based overland flow path delineation methods; these methods are triggered when the conventional flow path delineation process stops due to a flow obstacle. Two of the methods, the ‘bouncing ball and buildings’ and ‘bouncing ball and A*’ methods, are based on the conventional ‘bouncing ball’ concept; the third proposed method, the ‘sliding ball’ method, is based on the physical water accumulation concept. These enhanced methods were tested and their results were compared with results obtained using two conventional flow path delineation methods using a semi-synthetic test DEM. The results showed significant improvements in terms of the reliability of the delineated overland flow paths when using these enhanced methods.

scholarly journals BUILDING CHANGE DETECTION FROM BITEMPORAL AERIAL IMAGES USING DEEP LEARNING

2020 ◽  
Vol V-2-2020 ◽  
pp. 565-571
Author(s):  
S. Su ◽  
T. Nawata ◽  
T. Fuse
Keyword(s):  
Deep Learning ◽  
Change Detection ◽  
Urban Areas ◽  
Network Architecture ◽  
Aerial Images ◽  
Detection Accuracy ◽  
Detection Model ◽  
Wide Range ◽  
Surface Models ◽  
Data Source

Abstract. Automatic building change detection has become a topical issue owing to its wide range of applications, such as updating building maps. However, accurate building change detection remains challenging, particularly in urban areas. Thus far, there has been limited research on the use of the outdated building map (the building map before the update, referred to herein as the old-map) to increase the accuracy of building change detection. This paper presents a novel deep-learning-based method for building change detection using bitemporal aerial images containing RGB bands, bitemporal digital surface models (DSMs), and an old-map. The aerial images have two types of spatial resolutions, 12.5 cm or 16 cm, and the cell size of the DSMs is 50 cm × 50 cm. The bitemporal aerial images, the height variations calculated using the differences between the bitemporal DSMs, and the old-map were fed into a network architecture to build an automatic building change detection model. The performance of the model was quantitatively and qualitatively evaluated for an urban area that covered approximately 10 km2 and contained over 21,000 buildings. The results indicate that it can detect the building changes with optimum accuracy as compared to other methods that use inputs such as i) bitemporal aerial images only, ii) bitemporal aerial images and bitemporal DSMs, and iii) bitemporal aerial images and an old-map. The proposed method achieved recall rates of 89.3%, 88.8%, and 99.5% for new, demolished, and other buildings, respectively. The results also demonstrate that the old-map is an effective data source for increasing building change detection accuracy.

scholarly journals A framework for IoT-enabled environment aware traffic management

2021 ◽  
Vol 11 (1) ◽  
pp. 518
Author(s):  
Mohamed Fazil Mohamed Firdhous ◽  
B. H. Sudantha ◽  
Naseer Ali Hussien
Keyword(s):  
Traffic Congestion ◽  
Urban Areas ◽  
Traffic Management ◽  
Fine Particles ◽  
Environment Pollution ◽  
Negative Effects ◽  
Traffic Condition ◽  
Pollution Levels ◽  
Transport Services ◽  
The Cost

Vehicular traffic has increased across all over the world especially in urban areas due to many reasons including the reduction in the cost of vehicles, degradation of the quality of public transport services and increased wealth of people. The traffic congestion created by these vehicles causes many problems. Increased environment pollution is one of the most serious negative effects of traffic congestion. Noxious gases and fine particles emitted by vehicles affect people in different ways depending on their age and present health conditions. Professionals and policy makers have devised schemes for better managing traffic in congested areas. These schemes suffer from many shortcomings including the inability to adapt to dynamic changes of traffic patterns. With the development of technology, new applications like Google maps help drivers to select less congested routes. But, the identification of the best route takes only the present traffic condition on different road segments presently. In this paper the authors propose a system that helps drivers select routes based on the present and expected environment pollution levels at critical points in a given area.

scholarly journals Estimating lockdown-induced European NO<sub>2</sub> changes using satellite and surface observations and air quality models

2021 ◽  
Vol 21 (9) ◽  
pp. 7373-7394
Author(s):  
Jérôme Barré ◽  
Hervé Petetin ◽  
Augustin Colette ◽  
Marc Guevara ◽  
Vincent-Henri Peuch ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Machine Learning ◽  
Air Quality ◽  
Urban Areas ◽  
Gradient Boosting ◽  
Quality Models ◽  
Pollution Levels ◽  
Surface Station ◽  
Concentration Changes ◽  
Monitoring Service ◽  
No2 Pollution

Abstract. This study provides a comprehensive assessment of NO2 changes across the main European urban areas induced by COVID-19 lockdowns using satellite retrievals from the Tropospheric Monitoring Instrument (TROPOMI) onboard the Sentinel-5p satellite, surface site measurements, and simulations from the Copernicus Atmosphere Monitoring Service (CAMS) regional ensemble of air quality models. Some recent TROPOMI-based estimates of changes in atmospheric NO2 concentrations have neglected the influence of weather variability between the reference and lockdown periods. Here we provide weather-normalized estimates based on a machine learning method (gradient boosting) along with an assessment of the biases that can be expected from methods that omit the influence of weather. We also compare the weather-normalized satellite-estimated NO2 column changes with weather-normalized surface NO2 concentration changes and the CAMS regional ensemble, composed of 11 models, using recently published estimates of emission reductions induced by the lockdown. All estimates show similar NO2 reductions. Locations where the lockdown measures were stricter show stronger reductions, and, conversely, locations where softer measures were implemented show milder reductions in NO2 pollution levels. Average reduction estimates based on either satellite observations (−23 %), surface stations (−43 %), or models (−32 %) are presented, showing the importance of vertical sampling but also the horizontal representativeness. Surface station estimates are significantly changed when sampled to the TROPOMI overpasses (−37 %), pointing out the importance of the variability in time of such estimates. Observation-based machine learning estimates show a stronger temporal variability than model-based estimates.

scholarly journals Hazard indicators of urban soil contamination with polycyclic hydrocarbons on the example of monitoring results of the RUDN campus

2020 ◽  
Vol 28 (2) ◽  
pp. 112-130
Author(s):  
Margarita M. Redina ◽  
Alexander P. Khaustov ◽  
Xiangkai Li ◽  
Zhandos D. Kenzhin ◽  
Polina Yu. Silaeva
Keyword(s):  
Soil Contamination ◽  
Urban Areas ◽  
Carcinogenic Risk ◽  
Individual Characteristics ◽  
Forest Park ◽  
Pollution Levels ◽  
Sources Of Pollution ◽  
Functional Zones ◽  
Polycyclic Aromatic ◽  
The Individual

The characteristics of the hazard of urban soils pollution by polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs) are considered: naphthalene (Naph), anthracene (An), phenanthrene (Phen), pyrene (Py), fluoranthene (Flu), chrysene (Chr), benzo(a)anthracene (BaA), benzo[a]pyrene (BaP), benzo[b]fluoranthene (BbFlu), benzo[k]fluoranthene (BkFlu), dibenzo[ah]antracene (DBa), benzo[ghi]perylene (Bghi), indeno[1,2,3-c,d]pyrene). On the example of monitoring data on the RUDN University campus and the adjacent South-West Forest Park, modern approaches to assessing the hazard of pollution levels and the environmental risk of soil pollution are demonstrated: RQ indicators, total relative toxicity in comparison to BaP, carcinogenic risk, behavior of the representative PAHs. On the basis of a critical analysis of the pollution indicators, the optimal approaches to assessing the danger of the presence of polyarenes in the soils of urban areas are demonstrated. The leading sources of pollution (influence of vehicles) were identified. Different levels of environmental hazard of polyarene soil contamination in different functional zones of the analyzed territory are demonstrated: relatively clear territory in the middle zone of the park and a specific configuration of the pollution field on the rest of the territory. The necessity of developing ecosystem standards for urban natural complexes is justified, taking into account the individual characteristics of soils, the role of soil microbiota, the specificity of the use of the territory and the characteristics of pollution sources.

scholarly journals Urban Dendroflora of the Macedonia Park in the City of Skopje, North Macedonia

2019 ◽  
Vol 2 (3) ◽  
pp. 10-28
Author(s):  
Martina Shotaroska ◽  
Bojan Simovski ◽  
Tomcho Nikolovski ◽  
Katerina Chonevska ◽  
Ivan Minčev ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Woody Plants ◽  
Field Research ◽  
Woody Species ◽  
Pinus Nigra ◽  
Capital City ◽  
Cupressus Sempervirens ◽  
Hedera Helix ◽  
Platycladus Orientalis ◽  
Ecological Features ◽  
Juniperus Scopulorum

Subject of research in this article is the urban dendroflora of the Macedonia Park, situated on about 50,000 m2 in the Macedonian capital city of Skopje, i.e., identification and presence of the recent woody plants. Thus, observed are morphological and ecological features of the woody plants and their current state in this urban environment. The investigation relates to a seven-year period (since the establishment of the Park in 2012 up to late 2019). After the field research and the inventorisation of the woody plants in the Park, 82 taxa were identified, represented in 1,318 individuals. Most represented tree species is the hybrid Platanus × hispanica Mill. ex Münchh. with 103 individuals (7.81% of the overall urban dendroflora). Most frequent tree including infraspecific taxa is Fraxinus excelsior L. (including F. e. ‘Globosa’, F. e. ‘Jaspidea’, and F. e. ‘Pendula’) with a total number of 146 individuals (11.08%). Concerning other growth form, the mini and small tree roses of hybrid Rosa Floribunda Group outnumber all ornamental woody species with 225 bushes (17.07%). Climbers are represented with 3 taxa (3.66% of identified taxa) in pergolas (Wisteria sinensis /Sims/ Sweet, Parthenocissus quinquefolia /L./ Planch.), and wire cage topiary (Hedera helix L.). Likewise, 87 individuals (6.60%) of 10 species (12.19%) occur as remnants of the greening in the past of which 3 species are used as a green core of a small sacral architecture: Cupressus sempervirens var. horizontalis (Mill.) Loudon (with 10 trees), Platycladus orientalis (L.) Franco (3), and Pinus nigra J.F.Arnold (1). In general, the urban dendroflora is properly selected and used for greening, although certain species and individuals are withering (e.g. Betula pendula ‘Youngii’, Juniperus scopulorum ‘Skyrocket’, F. e. ‘Jaspidea’) or unsuitably used for avenue and in small alpine-like garden.

scholarly journals Rockfall Risk Analysis Based on Precise Topography using UAV

2020 ◽  
Vol 20 (4) ◽  
pp. 63-73
Author(s):  
Jaehee Choi ◽  
Namgyun Kim ◽  
Bongjin Choe ◽  
Byonghee Jun
Keyword(s):  
Point Cloud Data ◽  
University Campus ◽  
Digital Map ◽  
Cloud Data ◽  
The Road ◽  
Mountainous Regions ◽  
Digital Elevation ◽  
Surface Models ◽  
Aerial Vehicle ◽  
Elevation Model

In this study, the risk of rockfall on incision slopes adjacent to roads was evaluated using the RocFall program. The study area was a slope adjacent to the road leading to a university campus in Samcheok-si, Gangwon-do, with an area of 774 m<sup>2</sup> and an average slope of approximately 43°. A rock shed was installed at the lower zone of the slope. A 3D model of the terrain was generated based on point cloud data gathered using a UAV (unmanned aerial vehicle). Fast and accurate orthoimages were captured by UAV and high-resolution digital surface models (DSMs) were produced; these data were used to assess the risk of rockfall. Compared to terrain extraction using a digital elevation model (DEM) generated from an existing digital map, terrain extraction using a UAV was more effective in deriving results close to the actual situation in the field, especially for the analysis of rockfall jump height and kinetic energy. The necessity of constructing 3D topographic data using UAVs to predict rockfall disasters in mountainous regions was confirmed.

scholarly journals The contribution of natural and artificial regeneration at the restoration of fire-affected peri-urban forest of Thessaloniki (Northern Greece)

2017 ◽  
Vol 19 (1) ◽  
pp. 29-36
Keyword(s):  
Natural Regeneration ◽  
Urban Forest ◽  
Burned Area ◽  
Cupressus Sempervirens ◽  
Northern Greece ◽  
Mixed Stands ◽  
Artificial Regeneration ◽  
Pinus Brutia ◽  
Stem Quality ◽  
Cupressus Arizonica

<p>In this study, the post-fire regeneration of three coniferous species (<em>Pinus brutia, Cupressus sempervirens </em>and<em> Cupressus arizonica)</em> was examined in the peri-urban forest of Thessaloniki, Northern Greece. The wildfire took place in July 1997 and burned almost 60% of the forest vegetation. During the autumn of 2010, 34 experimental plots were established in all aspects within the burned area. In each experimental plot the following measurements were carried out: height, diameter at breast height and crown projection in two perpendicular diameters. The results show that the <em>Pinus brutia </em>individuals, most of which came from natural regeneration, presented the best growth, in relation to the two other species in all aspects. As for <em>Cupressus sempervirens</em>, equal parts of which came from natural and artificial regeneration was characterized by remarkable growth especially in the Northeastern aspect. Finally, <em>Cupressus arizonica</em> existed in all aspects except the Northeastern. It also presented a satisfactory development, especially on the Southern aspect. Fourteen years after the fire pure or mixed stands of the above mentioned species show vigorous growth and good stem quality. Finally, the rates of participation of individual forest species indicate that the restoration has been achieved mainly by natural regeneration.</p>

scholarly journals Environmental monitoring of soil pollution in urban areas (a case study from Heraklion city, Central Crete, Greece)

2017 ◽  
Vol 47 (2) ◽  
pp. 963
Author(s):  
E. Kokinou ◽  
C. Belonaki ◽  
D. Sakadakis ◽  
K. Sakadaki
Keyword(s):  
Magnetic Susceptibility ◽  
Urban Areas ◽  
Magnetic Measurements ◽  
Topographic Map ◽  
Near Surface ◽  
Thermomagnetic Analysis ◽  
Geological Features ◽  
Digital Elevation ◽  
Elevation Model

Main scope of the present study is to combine topographic and geological data, magnetic susceptibility and thermomagnetic analysis in order to investigate the magnetic properties of the near surface soils in possible polluted urban areas. For this purpose, a power plant with a dense traffic net around it, located in the NW section of Heraklion city in Crete was selected to be the study area. Surface soil samples have been collected from the area under investigation and they were analyzed in order to estimate the spatial distribution of the magnetic susceptibility. Loci of high values of the magnetic susceptibility within the study area gave rise to further proceed to thermomagnetic analysis of the selected samples. GIS techniques were used for mapping the magnetic measurements on the various topographic and geological features of the area. The digital elevation model was created by the digitization of the topographic map contours (1:5000 scale maps). The combination of the above techniques indicate high values of the magnetic susceptibility especially in the northeastern part of the investigated area, possibly related to pollution due to the presence of heavy metals.

Pollution levels and health risk assessment of particulate phthalic acid esters in arid urban areas

2017 ◽  
Vol 8 (1) ◽  
pp. 188-195 ◽  
Author(s):  
He-Hua Zeng ◽  
Hong-Xi Zhang ◽  
Xia Wu ◽  
Hong-Xin Gu ◽  
Li-Zhong Zhang ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Risk Assessment ◽  
Health Risk ◽  
Health Risk Assessment ◽  
Urban Areas ◽  
Phthalic Acid ◽  
Phthalic Acid Esters ◽  
Pollution Levels ◽  
Acid Esters
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