Mapping geosystem services potential for urban climate resilience: A case study from Malmö, Sweden

Journal article, 2026

Urban climate resilience planning often overlooks the subsurface, despite its potential to mitigate flooding, heat stress, and drought. To demonstrate these potentials, we developed thematic Geosystem Service (GS) maps for Malmö, Sweden, to support the integration of the subsurface into climate adaptation strategies. This study identifies GS relevant to the local context, proposes indicators for mapping these services, suggests a methodology for developing GS potential maps and tests the usability of these maps with municipal planners. Six GS related to the subsurface were identified: 1) regulation of coastal erosion, 2) extraction of heat and cold from the subsurface, 3) infiltration and retention of stormwater, 4) provision of subsurface space, 5) provision of groundwater, and 6) provision of construction materials. The findings indicate that GS potential mapping can reveal opportunities to utilise subsurface functions important for climate adaptation, but also show that this capacity is highly uneven across space and often constrained by land use, contamination risks, and technical or legal limitations. Usability testing with planners suggests that the developed GS potential maps may serve more effectively as communicative instruments than as direct planning tools. By illustrating how subsurface services can be systematically incorporated into planning, this research provides a foundation for enhancing the operability of GS in future climate adaptation practices.