Microclimate Effects and Irrigation Water Requirement of Mesic, Oasis,
and Xeric Landscapes
Abstract
Urban irrigation is an essential process in land-atmosphere interaction.
It is one of the uncertain parameters of the urban hydrology because of
the presence of various microclimates. This study investigates the
microclimate effects and irrigation water requirements of three
landscape types in an arid region of Phoenix, AZ. The microclimate
effect encompassed surface temperature, air temperature, and wind speed.
The three landscapes include mesic, oasis, and xeric. The simulation was
conducted using ENVI-met software for the hottest day of the year (23rd
June 2011). The simulated model was validated using ground data. Results
show that the mesic landscape induced cooling effects, both in the
day-time and nighttime, by reducing the surface temperature and air
temperature. However, the mesic landscape showed high-water consumption
because of high leaf area density. The oasis landscape showed more
day-time cooling than the mesic landscape, but the nighttime warming was
similar to the xeric landscape. However, the potential irrigation water
requirement was lower than the mesic landscape. Moreover, microclimate
conditions varied spatially in each neighborhood. The xeric landscape
showed lower wind speeds and air temperatures between the buildings.
Overall, the oasis landscape proved to be the most efficient of the
three landscapes for water consumption and day-time cooling.