Evaluating front yard greenery for enhanced indoor environmental quality and energy efficiency

Industrial urban areas like West Melbourne suffer from poor Indoor Environmental Quality (IEQ), elevated energy use, and reduced thermal comfort due to dense built form, limited vegetation, and pollution accumulation. This study investigates the potential of front yard greenery as a Nature-based Solution (NbS) to mitigate these urban environmental challenges and improve building-level IEQ and energy efficiency. A multi-layered, data-driven approach was adopted, incorporating local air quality datasets, wind flow analyses, tree species selection tools (including i-Tree), and thermal comfort data. The study introduces the concept of the Buffer Zone, the transition space between the residential façade and public space, and conducts preliminary ENVI-met simulations to quantify the microclimatic effects of introducing vegetation in this zone. Results suggest that strategic tree placement can meaningfully alter wind patterns, reduce solar radiation, improve air quality, enhance natural ventilation, reduce pollutant exposure, and decrease façade-level heat loads. Simulation findings show that vegetation in the Buffer Zone can reduce Physiological Equivalent Temperature (PET) near the building façade by up to 17.3 °C, during peak summer hours. These findings highlight the underutilised potential of private greenery for passive climate control. The research provides practical guidance for integrating vegetation into front yards to enhance sustainability and comfort in dense urban neighbourhoods.