Policies to decrease land surface temperature based on land cover change: an assessment related to Sardinia, Italy

This study aims at analyzing analogies and differences between the spatial relations regarding Land Surface Temperature (LST) and land covers with ref-erence to spring and summer 2019 by coupling GIS spatial analysis and regression analysis. Moreover, building on the outcomes of the model which relates LST to land cover types, the impact of future afforestation in rural areas is detected through a “what if” assessment. The island of Sardinia is taken as a case study because of its climate homogeneity and self-containment. The correlation between the spatial distribution of LST and land cover reveals that urbanization and the spatial dynamics of heating phenomena are closely connected. The methodology of this study can be easily implemented in other regional contexts, and comparison of analogies and differences are quite effective and useful in identifying stylized facts and policy implications.