| Abstract | Driven by the global emission of greenhouse gases, Canada’s climate has changed and will continue to develop, where on average the warming experienced in Canada has been approximately double the magnitude of global warming. In addition, increases in anthropogenic heat emissions and a reduction of green spaces and surface albedo due to rapid land transformation has directly impacted the energy balance of urban environments. As a result, urban areas are experiencing elevated temperature relative to their rural surroundings otherwise known as the urban heat island (UHI) effect. The federal government of Canada released the strengthened climate plan in 2020, which emphasizes using nature-based solutions (NbS) for their ability to reduce the UHI effect and the potential of overheating while providing one of more desired eco-system services. This report evaluates the potential effectiveness of NbS at reducing the risk of overheating under Canadian climate conditions by completing a review of studies investigating the use of surface greenery (SG) and surface reflectivity (SR) to reduce overheating within Canada. In addition, a review of Canadian bylaws and policies that specify the use of SG and SR to reduce urban temperatures is completed. Combined, the findings from this review could be used to assist in estimating the percent coverage/adoption of NbS techniques on buildings and urban scales, providing a benchmark on the parameters to be assessed within a particular domain. These coverage/adoption estimates could then be used in future simulations to investigate the efficacy and benefits of these techniques. Outgrowth from this work may be able to aid in the development of tools and design guidelines that policy makers and urban planners could use when implementing NbS in their communities to reduce the risk of overheating. |
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