Land use, urban growth, and the increasing impacts of climate change all play a role in shaping the climate in urban areas. To assess baseline climatic conditions, the State of Berlin developed ‘Urban Climate Planning Guidelines’ (PHK for short), which serve as a foundation for evaluation. These guidelines provide a tool for integrating climate considerations into development projects across various planning levels and objectives. Their aim is to support spatial planning that addresses impacts on human health and comfort, while encouraging the most efficient use of space (cf. VDI 2015).
In 2022, the Planning Guidelines were updated in conjunction with a revised citywide climate model and climate analysis for Berlin. The updated maps reflect the great complexity of the subject, the increasing importance of climate considerations in urban development policy, and rising user demand for more detailed and accurate data. The Urban Climate Planning Guidelines comprise five complementary maps, all accessible via the Geoportal Berlin (available in German only: Gesamtbewertung der Tag- und Nachtsituation, Bewertung der Tagsituation, Bewertung der Nachsituation, stadtklimatisch besonders belastete sowie vulnerable Gebiete, Räumliche Differenzierung von Maßnahmenempfehlungen der Klimaanpassung):
1. Overall Assessment of Daytime and Nighttime Conditions
2. Assessment of Daytime Conditions
3. Assessment of Nighttime Conditions
4. Areas Particularly Affected by Urban Climate Impacts and Climate-Vulnerable Areas
5. Spatial Differentiation of Recommended Climate Adaptation Measures
The map titled Overall Assessment of Daytime and Nighttime Conditions (04.11.1) provides a comprehensive, citywide evaluation of climatic conditions in urban areas combined for both day and night, including any climate-regulating functions. It serves as a specialised knowledge base informing considerations at both local and citywide planning levels. The underlying Daytime (04.11.1.1) and Nighttime (04.11.1.2) assessments are also available as standalone maps.
The map Areas Particularly Affected by Urban Climate Impacts and Climate-Vulnerable Areas (04.11.2) integrates selected sub-topics of urban development with the analysis results of the main map and combines them with high-resolution factual data and geodata in addition. It supports decision-making for specific sectoral planning processes and other issues, such as urban regeneration, sensitive building/land uses, and demographic factors.
The map titled Measures (04.11.3) assigns 16 targeted measures to all ISU5 block (segment) areas and road areas, based on area types and spatial characteristics. These measures were developed as part of the Urban Development Plan Climate (StEP Klima 2.0; cf. SenStadt 2021b) and correspond to the urban structure types defined for Berlin (cf. SenStadt 2022).
The 2022 edition marks the third update of these thematic maps since 2004. Published in the Environmental Atlas and on the Geoportal Berlin, it supersedes the 2015 edition (cf. SenStadt 2015) as the sectoral planning and decision-making tool for incorporating urban climate considerations into Berlin’s development strategies.
Key updates compared to the 2015 edition are summarised in the following:- assessment of green and open spaces,
- separate assessments for daytime and nighttime conditions,
- revised method for calculating the overall assessment,
- inclusion of commercial areas, and
- new method for identifying areas without overnight use based on population data.