Climate change and urban planning

In the 21st century, scientists, politicians, entrepreneurs, and the general public are all focusing on the two issues of global climate change and urbanization in China. The “Copenhagen Agreement” adopted by the United Nations Conference on Climate Change in 2009 emphasized that climate change is one of the most significant challenges we face today. From a scientific point of view, a substantial reduction in global carbon emissions is necessary, and the global temperature rise should be controlled below 2°C in accordance with the vision stated in the IPCC Fourth Assessment Report. Reiterate the strong political urge to fight climate change, as well as the principle of “common but differentiated responsibilities” and respective capabilities. …Decided to adopt various methods to improve the cost-effectiveness of mitigation actions and promote the implementation of mitigation actions.

Climate change and urban planning
Figure 1 Analysis of the impact of global climate change on human society

Global climate change will inevitably have a series of impacts on human society. In terms of water, ecosystems, food, coastal zones, health, special events, etc., some are inevitable, and human society needs to adopt adaptive methods to deal with it; some are It is possible to reduce its impact on human society through human efforts, such as reducing greenhouse gas emissions (Figure 1). How to achieve this emission reduction target through technological, policy and planning innovation is an important challenge facing China. How to solve this pattern, the innovation of urban planning based on climate change has become one of the key scientific issues. As early as 1992, the “United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC)” pointed out that in response to climate change, one is to reduce greenhouse gas emissions to slow down the change, and the other is to adapt to the impact of climate change. At the city level, such mitigation and adaptation are mainly concentrated in construction, energy, water supply, heating and cooling, garbage disposal, transportation, and land use planning (Figure 2).

Climate change and urban planning
Figure 2 The main areas of climate change mitigation and adaptation at the city level

With the rapid advancement of urbanization, industrialization, and motorization, the continuous increase in carbon emissions puts increasing pressure on natural systems and resources, which directly leads to global climate change and the continuous deterioration of the ecological environment. Low-carbon development has first become a response to the global Climate and an important area that promotes harmony between man and nature. In December 2008, the United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP) climate change strategy formulated the UNEP 2010-2011 work plan, which made “promoting the transition to a low-carbon society” as the strategic priority area of ​​the UNEP climate change plan, and listed it in the renewable energy resource assessment and Key intervention methods such as planning, marketization of clean energy technologies, and knowledge networks. Since urbanized areas are also major sources of greenhouse gas emissions, for example, European cities and towns account for 69% of the entire European energy consumption, and all Chinese cities and towns account for at least 80% of the total energy consumption in society (Qiu Baoxing, 2009). Therefore, the introduction of low-carbon concepts into the planning field of urbanized areas is undoubtedly of very important significance and scientific value for mitigating climate change.