Spatiotemporal analysis on the squatter development: a case study in Kampung Baru, Kuala Lumpur

Abstract

As a Malay Agricultural Settlement gazetted in 1900, Kampung Baru (Kuala Lumpur) has been subjected to prolonged national interests (e.g. economic, social, environment and politic) and it is pressured by modern and future development. Theoretically, the Urban Heat Island (UHI) phenomenon is prevailed in the area, but only few studies have been carried out to address the issues in a quantitative manner. Therefore this study aims at providing better insight the UHI phenomenon in Kampung Baru (Kuala Lumpur) and explicitly examining the temperature pattern and its vicinity effects. The field survey was conducted to collect the temperature and relative humidity using mobile survey method. Additionally, the fixed weather station had been installed starting from October 2013 in the study area and the data were compared with the rural area data from the Malaysia Meteorological Department. Thus, the intensity of UHI was estimated based on the difference between urban and rural temperature. In conclusion, this research quantified the UHI in Kampung Baru, and it can be a critical input to the urban development planning in a changing environment.