A Methodological Approach to Improve the Definition of Local Climate Zones in Complex Morphological Contexts. Application to the Case Study of Naples Metropolitan Area

With the intensification of climate change and urbanization processes, the topic of heat loads in urban areas has been receiving increasing attention from scholars and planners. In response to the pressing need to fill the gap between urban climatology and spatial planning issues, Canadian geographers Stewart and Oke introduced the concept of Local Climate Zones (LCZ). The main goal of LCZ system is to define morpho-typological (urban) surface classes that contribute to the creation of local climate conditions, mainly related to heat loads, based on a characteristic range of values of given parameters (Sky View Factor, permeability ratio, height and distance between buildings, anthropogenic heat fluxes, etc.). The LCZ concept was applied to understand which urban/rural spatial configurations were relevant for analyzing the urban climate. Although LCZ are an effective tool to make planners and designers aware of how urban configurations can impact on city temperatures and heat wave risks, they are rarely used as knowledge for climate-proof urban planning and design actions. Actually, the LCZ system suffers from some limitations, such as it lays on a topographically isotropic space and therefore does not take into account the relevant effect of the third dimension in lowering or enhancing heat loads. This paper propose an upgrade of the LCZ system through an integration with indicators able to describe topographical configurations with significant effects on surface heat balance. An application of the proposed method to Naples case study is presented, advantages, some limitations and future research prospects are discussed.