Urban heat island and its effect on the cooling and heating demands in urban and suburban areas of Hong Kong

This study investigates the urban heat island characteristics of four major areas of Hong Kong. The areas of study include a densely populated and well-developed commercial area (i.e., Tsim Sha Tsui) and three suburban areas (i.e., Cheung Chau, Lau Fau Shan and Sha Tin) with differing degrees of development. The weather station data of respective areas were acquired from the Hong Kong Observatory. The urban heat island intensity, determined as the air-temperature difference between the selected urban/suburban area and the reference rural area (i.e., Ta Kuw Ling) with thin population and lush vegetation, was used for the analysis. Results showed stronger heat island effect during winter and nighttime than during summer and daytime. An investigation of the cooling and heating degree days indicate that all areas have observed higher number of cooling degree days. However, the cooling degree days were the maximum while heating degree days were the minimum in the urban area (i.e., Tsim Sha Tsui). Clearly, the minimum heating degree days and the maximum cooling degree days in the urban area were a direct consequence of urban heat island. The 10-year (i.e., from 1995 to 2005) average shows that Cheung Chau experienced the least number of cooling degree days while Lau Fau Shan experienced the highest number of heating degree days. Seemingly, the area of Cheung Chau offers better thermal comfort conditions with the minimum number of cooling and heating degree days.