Urbanisation effects on summer habitat comfort: a case study of three coastal cities in southeast China

Abstract

Habitat comfort reflects the effects of weather conditions on quantifiable human sensations related to comfort. Urbanisation has a major effect on the energy balance of urban ecosystems, but whether the level affects summer habitat comfort is still unknown. This study analysed the relationship between urbanisation level and habitat comfort in summer for three cities in southeast China, Xiamen, Shantou and Shenzhen, using meteorological data from 1984 to 2007 and the co-integration method. The results showed that: (1) the number of micro-thermal and thermal days in summer increased from 1984 to 2007; (2) urbanisation level indices typically showed a co-integrated relationship with habitat comfort in summer, except for population density in Shantou, and urbanisation rate in Shenzhen; and (3) the correlation between urbanisation level and habitat comfort is positive. These results show that urbanisation level affects human habitat comfort and contributes to the quality of an urban environment.

Keywords:

• urbanisation rate
• population density
• co-integration

Acknowledgements

The authors acknowledge financial support from the Chinese Academy of Sciences (KZCX2-YW-450, 0714151d40, 0714061d30) and the National Natural Science Foundation of China (40901218).