Land Use-Air Pollution Interactions: Urban Form, Transportation, and Everyday Life
A special issue of Land (ISSN 2073-445X).
Deadline for manuscript submissions: closed (11 November 2021) | Viewed by 28061
Special Issue Editor
Interests: transportation policy, planning, and analysis; land use policy and planning; legal and regulatory issues; institutions and organizations; energy and the environment; new technologies
Special Issue Information
Air pollution is a major environmental concern around the world, with the World Health Organization reporting in 2018 that more than 9 out of 10 people live in areas where air pollution levels exceed its guidelines. This Special Issue focuses on the relationship between urban land use patterns and air pollution. As massive urban development and the increased use of private vehicles have emerged as major sources of air pollutants in a growing number of countries, studies have investigated the impact of urban form and transportation systems on air pollution, and government officials have introduced land use and transportation policies ranging from subsidies for electric vehicles and public charging stations, to incentives to use transit, bike, and walk and mandates to increase urban densities and mix uses to reduce the need for motorized transport. These policies have had mixed success and have often been controversial, and, as air pollution problems have continued or worsened, additional, more stringent policies are increasingly being tried out, including “green zones” into which only “clean” vehicles can enter, mandatory no-drive days, and restrictions on outdoor activities during severe pollution episodes. Vulnerable populations such as children, people with cardiopulmonary difficulties, and the elderly may be advised to take more extensive steps to reduce exposures, including working from home, refraining from discretionary travel, and otherwise limiting outdoor activities when pollution levels are high. Such restrictions are likely to have significant effects on the everyday lives of the affected populations, as well as on the vibrancy of the urban environment and the vitality of the local economy. Changes in land value, land use, and land profitability may result in preferred building designs and facilities. For example, in areas with persistent air quality problems there is likely to be an increase in demand for indoor activity space that can mitigate pollution exposure (e.g., indoor sports stadia and recreation facilities) as well as for housing, schools, and commercial buildings with air conditioning and air filtration systems that can reduce indoor pollution levels. Such changes in land use and hedonic characteristics have equity implications as well as economic and environmental impacts.
This Special Issue will explore the complex relationships between land use, human behavior, and air pollution, with a focus on urban areas. Potential topics may cover "best practice" guidance cautioning against locating housing, schools, hospitals, etc. near freeways or other heavy sources of emissions, impact of high-density developments on street level emissions concentrations, "spare the air policies" encouraging people to stay indoors and restrict activities during air pollution episodes, and impact of driving restrictions such as no-drive days or green vehicle zones on emissions, land uses, and urban activity levels. We welcome contributions from both qualitative and quantitative scholars and are especially interested in establishing diverse impacts in a wide range of contexts. Preference will be given to those that successfully demonstrate implications for local policymaking.
Prof. Dr. Elizabeth Deakin
Guest Editor
Manuscript Submission Information
Manuscripts should be submitted online at www.mdpi.com by registering and logging in to this website. Once you are registered, click here to go to the submission form. Manuscripts can be submitted until the deadline. All submissions that pass pre-check are peer-reviewed. Accepted papers will be published continuously in the journal (as soon as accepted) and will be listed together on the special issue website. Research articles, review articles as well as short communications are invited. For planned papers, a title and short abstract (about 100 words) can be sent to the Editorial Office for announcement on this website.
Submitted manuscripts should not have been published previously, nor be under consideration for publication elsewhere (except conference proceedings papers). All manuscripts are thoroughly refereed through a single-blind peer-review process. A guide for authors and other relevant information for submission of manuscripts is available on the Instructions for Authors page. Land is an international peer-reviewed open access monthly journal published by MDPI.
Please visit the Instructions for Authors page before submitting a manuscript. The Article Processing Charge (APC) for publication in this open access journal is 2600 CHF (Swiss Francs). Submitted papers should be well formatted and use good English. Authors may use MDPI's English editing service prior to publication or during author revisions.
Keywords
- Air pollution
- land use pattern
- urban form
- transportation
- travel behavior
- everyday lives
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