Work

Advancing urban blue space monitoring and management: A review of remote sensing applications and interdisciplinary impact assessment

Year: 2026

Type: article

Abstract: As urbanization accelerates and climate change intensifies, urban blue space (UBS) has attracted widespread research attention for its crucial role in improving ecological quality and promoting sustainable urban development. This review synthesizes 1369 studies published from 2000 to 2024. It reveals an expansion of research topics from early monitoring of water quantity and quality to the multidimensional assessment of social and environmental impacts. This review compares remote sensing data sources and methods for UBS extraction and ecological parameter estimation. It highlights an evolution in extraction methods, from simple thresholding to complex deep learning models, with enhanced superpixel methods combined with deep learning achieving 99.14 % average overall accuracy. By synthesizing findings from multiple studies, we summarize the spatio-temporal dynamics of UBS across various nations and identify potential driving factors. The results indicate divergent trends shaped by diverse climate conditions, urbanization patterns, and economic development modes, primarily driven by different human activities and policies. Finally, the review examines the multifaceted benefits and impacts of UBS, including ecosystem services, resident health, and economic value. While remote sensing has been used to assess these impacts by calculating blue space exposure and proximity, research in this area remains limited. Furthermore, insufficient assessment of social benefits and an unbalanced regional focus impede a holistic understanding of the complex relationship between UBS and urban systems. Therefore, this paper underscores the future importance of integrating multi-source remote sensing with socioeconomic data, promoting larger-scale coupling of monitoring and assessment research, and building an interdisciplinary research framework to foster sustainable management of UBS.

Source: Ecological Indicators

DOI: 10.1016/j.ecolind.2025.114563

Authors: Yiyi Xu, Yingbao Yang, Qicheng Liu, Chunqiao Song

Institutions: Hohai University, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Nanjing Institute of Geography and Limnology, Nanjing University of Information Science and Technology, University of Chinese Academy of Sciences

Language: English

Topic: Land Use and Ecosystem Services

Subfield: Global and Planetary Change

Field: Environmental Science

Domain: Physical Sciences

SDGs: Sustainable cities and communities, Climate action

Open Access status: gold

Estimated APC paid: $3,650