Climate change and urbanization are causing increasingly frequent urban flooding in countries around the world. Various innovative approaches have emerged to address this challenge. In China, the Sponge City was first proposed in 2012 to achieve an urban hydrological balance through natural storage, natural infiltration and natural purification. This article presents a comparative investigation (using a survey method) of new and old communities in Xixian New District and Xi’an in September 2021 to investigate public awareness of the Sponge City and understand levels of satisfaction and acceptance. Individuals of the same age or education residing in the Sponge City generally know more about the Sponge City and were more willing to accept it than those in traditional cities. Moreover, the residents of Sponge City understand the Sponge City concept well, with a majority of the respondents (71.82%) expressing clear understanding on the conception of Sponge City. However, residents in a traditional city exhibited much less understanding of the concept (44.24%). Furthermore, for those living in the same area, people who are younger or have higher education exhibited a clearer understanding of and acceptance of the Sponge City and local government. In this survey, the average scores (assign values to the different responses, then average and percent it) of respondents in Xixian New District with master’s degrees, bachelor’s degrees and high school degrees or below were evaluated at 76.88, 67.94 and 62.15, respectively, compared to 62.07, 50.18 and 50.78 in Xi’an. Lastly, we found that differences in living environment have a significant influence on residents’ perceptions. Residents living in the Sponge City are generally satisfied with the travel and living conditions and greatly support the local government. Meanwhile, this study will help relevant authorities pay more attention to residents’ opinions and help them to formulate policies to spread the concept of Sponge City and encourage residents’ participation.

Floods are among the most destructive natural disasters, causing extensive damage to human lives, property, and the environment. Pakistan is susceptible to natural calamities, such as floods, resulting in millions of people being impacted yearly. It has been demonstrated that flood severity is rising and may continue to escalate in the coming years because of climate change-induced changes in monsoon precipitation in the country. Given the country’s exposure to flooding, it is essential to assess the vulnerability to floods to prepare for and mitigate their impact in Pakistan. This study provides a new conceptual framework for assessing flood risk and vulnerability in Charsadda, a flood-prone district in Pakistan. It evaluates the vulnerability of settlements to floods based on four indicators: population density, the average gross domestic product (GDP) of land, the distance between settlements and rivers, and land use and cover (LULC). The analytical hierarchy process (AHP) technique was integrated with the geographical information system (GIS) to assess the level of vulnerability to floods in the study area. The results reveal a higher degree of vulnerability to floods in the region. The spatial pattern of vulnerable areas reveals a significant connection between high-risk flood areas and densely populated areas during different flood seasons. The results further reveal that more than 60% of the area is arable land and is highly susceptible to flood. The population and their land-use setup show high and extremely high values of vulnerability in the normalized threshold of 0.3–0.4, respectively. The study provides an in-depth and comprehensive analysis of the chosen indicators, evaluation methods, and results, making this a valuable contribution to the field of flood vulnerability assessment. The findings of this study also include thematic maps and related information to the stakeholders for effective vulnerability management in the study area.

To provide scientific basis for the prevention and control of heavy metal pollution, a field investigation, sample collection and analysis of the heavy metal content in farmland soils at the northern foot of the Qinling Mountains were conducted. Based on the comparative analysis of the single pollution index method, the Nemerow comprehensive pollution index method, the geological accumulation index method, the potential ecological hazard index method, and the geological accumulation index method were used to comprehensively analyze and evaluate the risk of soil heavy metal pollution. The results showed that the heavy metal pollution of farmland soil at the northern foot of the Qinling Mountains was severe, among which Hg and Cr pollution was relatively obvious. Taking the soil screening values of agricultural land as the standard, the quantity of element Hg in agricultural soils at the northern foot of the Qinling Mountains was higher than the relevant screening value. In the two sample sites investigated, the intensity of the heavy metal accumulation index in Baoqizhai Village was Hg > Cr > Cu > As > Pb, and in Dayangyu Village it was Cr > Cu > As > Pb. Among them, in Baoqizhai Village it shows the heavy pollution caused by Hg ($I_{geo}=$ 3.42) and the light pollution caused by Cr ($I_{geo}$ < 1) in the two areas. Hg is mostly affected by mining activities and its atmospheric subsidence. At the same time, Cr is mainly derived from the weathering of rock parent material and is also affected by anthropogenic factors to a certain extent. The accumulation of heavy metals in the farmland soil around the northern foot of the Qinling Mountains was relatively high, posing a threat to the surrounding soil environment. Therefore, it is urgent to control farmland soil environmental pollution.