The urban growth of the metropolitan area of Sao Paulo and its impact on the climate

Abstract

The Metropolitan Area of Sao Paulo (MASP) has undergone a rapid urban growth process over the years, and this has been reflected in major climate change. Thus, through the documentation of the urban evolution process of MASP associated with the analysis of historical series of meteorological data, this research tries to show that changes in land use, evidenced mainly by the loss of green areas in the process of urbanization growth over the years, may result in climatic changes characterized by different states of equilibrium. The climatic changes caused by urban growth are better observed in the temperatures, however, the variable precipitation, although with a high level of uncertainty, can also reflect these changes in particular episodes, which in the case of MASP occur mainly during the rainy season. The results of this research indicate that both precipitation and temperature data show a tendency to increase the frequency of days with extreme values, especially since the mid 70's. Knowing the results that intense changes in land use can generate, the population and urban planners should consider the possibility of applying actions to control and reduce this disturbance in addition to adapting to the changes that have already occurred. Keywords: Metropolitan area of Sao Paulo, Urban growth, Temperature changes, Precipitations changes, Urban climate system