Can green infrastructure cultivate climate justice? Insights from suburban Australia

Abstract

Green infrastructure has recently risen to national and international prominence for its purported functions, benefits and services for built environments (e.g. reducing stormwater runoff, modulating urban temperatures). Considerable green infrastructure research has examined inner-city locales. In this paper we assess whether residents living in suburban Gold Coast City, Australia perceive green infrastructure as an efficacious climate adaptation strategy. Gold Coast City has pursued urban densification (e.g. reducing block sizes, increasing building heights) to accommodate rapid population growth. But little attention has been given to the combined effects of urban consolidation and climate change on lower-income residents in the suburban fringe, including heat island impacts and rising energy prices associated with cooling homes due to reduced tree canopy cover. We used a survey of residents in Gold Coast city to determine respondents perceptions of the benefits of retrofitting green infrastructure to their neighbourhood and to gauge their level of awareness of, and concern about, climate change impacts. Initial results suggest that more disadvantaged residents appear to have comparatively higher energy expenses, and their concern for climate change and disposition towards urban greening may render them more vulnerable to future impacts. Findings have implications for policy responses and for efforts to create climate-just cities.