Kolding is a smaller city in Denmark with around 60,000 inhabitants. While large cities usually are well supplied with high quality data and images, smaller cities are less favoured with specialised data, such as data on Urban Heat Islands (UHI), 3-30-300, detailed tree maps, etc.

Hence, from that perspective Kolding is representative for many thousand smaller cities or towns across EU.

Noise, heat anf biodiversity maps of Kolding.

The use case goal was to identify optimal locations for new trees and promote urban greening by addressing challenges related to heat islands, pollution, and limited plantable spaces. The city tested several 100KTREEs tools, including tree mapping, ecosystem service valuation, biodiversity and air quality modelling, and identification of new planting areas. Using LiDAR and satellite data, partners assessed environmental and social benefits such as cooling, air quality improvement, and flood mitigation, while benchmarking the 100KTREEs approach against existing tools.

The Kolding use case applied the tree growth model to predict canopy expansion using two datasets of identified urban trees. Results showed that by 2030, overall canopy cover in the city is expected to grow by 1%, while young trees may increase their coverage by 7%. Despite limited species and age data, predictions were calibrated using models trained on Copenhagen trees. The study also analysed extreme heat events, identifying hotspots for heat exposure and greening opportunities through Wet-Bulb Globe Temperature modelling. Additionally, high-resolution (2 m) Biodiversity Suitability Index and noise maps were developed to assess avian habitat potential and soundscape quality across Kolding.

Many cities are currently in the process of converting grey areas into green areas but are often meeting resistance among the citizens due to the consequent reduction of parking places in the cities, besides lacking convincing arguments to raise funding for the intervention.

Roskilde High School is one such example. They want to transform their parking lot into a green recreational area open to the public. The case aimed to test 100KTREEs’ modelling tools under three greening scenarios, ranging from partial container-based planting to full soil unsealing and canopy coverage.

Ambient temperature and impact of trees due to shading

The Use Case explored the transformation of a 120 m² sealed parking area into a multifunctional green space. Key constraints included preserving potential archaeological layers by minimizing soil excavation and addressing the practical implications of replacing parking spaces used by staff or visitors. Data from Roskilde Municipality, including high-resolution topographic and land cover models, were combined with 100KTREEs’ very high-resolution tree maps to model the effects of each greening scenario on air pollution, flooding, and heat mitigation.

Results demonstrated clear environmental benefits across all scenarios, particularly in temperature reduction and runoff management. The introduction of permeable grass pavement and the addition of seven small trees achieved measurable cooling effects, mainly through shading, and improved local water infiltration. Machine learning-based wind modelling further supported analysis of microclimatic changes, revealing how vegetation could reduce local heat stress. The case also highlighted potential social gains by turning an underused parking lot into a recreational green area for students and residents, suggesting a strong case for public-private co-funding of similar small-scale urban greening initiatives.

Åboulevarden and H.C Andersen’s Boulevard, is one of the most challenging areas in terms of traffic load and as a results poor air quality. At the same time, it is a highly populated area with many pedestrians and bicycles. The municipality is currently considering to construct a tunnel (bringing the traffic underground), which is an extremely expensive solution.

The aim of the Use Case was to model what is needed to bring the air quality (PM2.5 and PM10) under a certain threshold in terms of reducing the traffic and/or planting more trees in the area.

Using 100KTREEs tools for tree mapping, air quality modelling, and cooling assessment, the study evaluated the effects of tree planting and traffic reduction on local air pollution levels (NO₂, PM₁₀, and PM₂.₅). Results showed that while additional trees altered local concentration patterns, sometimes increasing pollution locally due to reduced dispersion, they contributed to an overall reduction in pollutant deposition across the wider area.

The traffic control scenario proved particularly effective, with a simulated 50% reduction in traffic leading to an estimated 30% decrease in pollutant concentrations within the Amager Boulevard district. These findings support data-driven planning for sustainable urban mobility and greening strategies in Copenhagen.