Benchmarking Heat Across Campbelltown City, New South Wales

The compounding effects of climate change and rapid urbanisation cause cities to heat up. Metropolitan Sydney is no exception to this trend. Today, the communities of Campbelltown City in the southern region of the Greater Sydney Basin already experience extreme summer temperatures and heatwave conditions on an annual basis. Climate predictions point toward amplification of summer heat. Already today these conditions represent a serious threat to the quality of life, public health and economic prosperity in the region. Near-surface air temperature in complex urban terrain can vary. A large proportion of this variation originates from differences in thermal characteristics of materials that together make up the terrain. While roads and buildings can lead to higher temperatures in urban landscapes, trees and other green urban infrastructure can provide cooling. Hence, depending on the kind, make and proportion of urban infrastructure types (e.g. grey, green, blue), air temperatures will vary. Until now, the magnitude of air temperature variation among suburbs within the Campbelltown City Local Government Area (LGA) remained unknown.