Urban Forest Configurations In An "Oasis City" Of Arid Zone: Mendoza (Argentina). Influence On Residential Energy Consumption

The Mendoza Metropolitan Area (Argentina) is characterized by an intense urban forest, which makes it an "oasis city" inserted in an arid area. However, the generated heat island and their energy-environmental consequences emphasize the need to rethink the way of tree plantation in the city. Therefore, the goal of this study was to evaluate the effect of different urban-forest schemes on residential energy consumption. For that purpose, nine representative urban canyons were micro-climatically monitored in winter and summer and the thermal behavior of a prototype housing inserted in each urban canyon was simulated. The results indicate that the urban designs that control the solar radiation by means of an adequate distribution of the shade and that allow a better wind circulation, minimize the auxiliary energy consumption up to 30%. This allows generating feasible technical proposals to incorporate into urban codes and therefore, more efficient use of trees lined.