| Urban climate is of great importance for the sustainable urban planning. However, urban climatic application has a low impact on urban planning. The Urban Climatic Map (UCMap) is a climatic information and evaluation tool to integrate urban climatic factors and town planning considerations by presenting climatic phenomena and problems on two-dimensional spatial maps. Literature reviews that the UCMap studies have been developed since the 1970s, but most UCMap studies focus on low density cities. Due to increasing urban population and rapid urbanization nowadays, compact living and high density city lives are inevitable trends around the world. This makes it an urgent issue to study how to apply UCMap to high density cities, such as Hong Kong.;The study used meteorological data from Hong Kong Observatory and planning data from Planning Department of the Government of Hong Kong SAR. Based on the climatic analysis from the Urban Climatic Analysis Map and Wind Information Layer, this study developed an Urban Climatic Recommendation Map (UC-ReMap) and formulated key planning recommendations for Hong Kong, which could then be applied at the level of Outline Zoning Plan (OZP). Planning controllers including density (plot ratio, building height, and site coverage/ground coverage), greenery (green belt, green oasis and linkage of open space & green network), building setback, ventilation corridor (water channel and air path & breezeway), non-building area, building separation and building permeability are discussed and incorporated into the key planning recommendations. Furthermore, four categories of OZPs, 18 groups of OZPs and detailed UC-ReMaps were elaborated according to their urban climatic characteristics. Each group was evaluated further into sub-zones with detailed planning advices. All UC-ReMaps and planning recommendations can provide an urban climatic planning framework for Hong Kong and guidance for the planning and development process; it also ensures that appropriate urban climatic considerations are taken into account. Based on above framework, this study furthers the field by applying Urban Climatic Map into the town planning of Hong Kong.;The study finds that the UC-ReMap of Hong Kong provides a useful urban climatic information platform at the comprehensive, territorial and strategic levels for planners and policy makers. According to the climatic planning recommendations, appropriate plan actions could be conducted to improve the urban climatic conditions of the specific territory, particularly the sensitive areas. These facilitate the planning related discussion and decision-making process at the OZPs. Moreover, the research method and planning recommendations developed in this study, which are in the context of high-density cities , offer a lit of implications for possible application in other similar places, especially the region of Pear River Delta. The gained research experience and learned application lessons have been applied into several other governmental research projects beyond Hong Kong, such as Kaohsiung, Macau and Arnhem.;Key words: Urban Climatic Recommendation Map, Outline Zoning Plan, Urban Planning, High Density Cities. |
